All at Once
by wolfensilverobsidian
Summary: Her entire life was spent living in the shadow of her younger sister. His entire life was dedicated towards honoring Konoha as a shinobi- even at the cost of his family's lives- all but one. Sasuke is out for Itachi, and Itachi is out for Hinata. As for Hinata, well... she doesn't know who she wants.
1. Trust Me

Hi everyone,

This is my first attempt at fanfiction, so I know it most likely won't be up to par with the stories I read so often on this site, but please bear with me. I also know that the series of events which unfold in this chapter aren't exactly what happened in the anime or manga, but I guess some originality is always good. This chapter is a prologue of sorts and is written in a different format than the rest of the story will be, this is more of a narrative from a third party point of view and probably won't be too interesting, but it is vital to the story:)

This will eventually become a Hinata/Itachi full-length fanfiction, and there may or may not be some character deaths- but if so, it shouldn't be anyone too prominent to the storyline. Then again, maybe not. :p

I had the random(?) idea to post in every chapter a set of song lyrics which I feel will suit the chapter at hand. If anyone seems to want me to, I can explain why I choose each set of lyrics, but if you know the storyline and character relationships then it shouldn't be a problem.

"_We're only taking turns_

_Holding this world_

_It's how it's always been_

_When you're older, you will understand"_

_-'All At Once'- The Fray_

October twelfth did not go as planned for Uchiha Sasuke.

It all started with darkness. As soon as he became aware of the time, Sasuke had been returning home from shiruken training at the Academy with Iruka-sensei and the rest of his classmates. As he tore into the street which the Uchiha Manor resided, however, he felt a brief flash of chakra from behind. Being at the top of his class Sasuke had no issues with detecting individual chakra signatures and therefore spun around to see who was there.

All that met his eyes was a nondescript telephone pole illuminated by the full moon which had long since risen. Sasuke observed the scene in front of him for a few moments longer, hesitating, before continuing along his path to his previous destination- only to be stopped once again.

It was dark.

At this time of the night various members of his clan would still be awake and moving about, either returning home from work, buying last-minute necessities or simply strolling the streets of Konoha, something his mother often did despite his father's objections. Thinking such things brought a brief but intense bout of worry, which Sasuke attempted to tamp down- his clan was small but strong with many members being of jounin status or higher. There was absolutely nothing for him to worry about.

Sasuke took twelve more steps, in the process revealing a scene which was to be forever imprinted into the deepest recesses of the young Uchiha's mind.

Kunai.

Senbon.

Shuriken.

_Blood._

...Bodies. Dozens of them.

There was Sasuke's beloved oji and oba, his obaa-san who he had seen early this morning before he left for the academy, wishing him well in his training and chiding him to be safe after seeing the twin bandages which were seemingly permanently bonded to each side of his mouth after practicing katon jutsu out on the dock behind his family's house. There was even the sight of Sasuke's young mei Ketaru, whose sixth birthday had just occurred a few days ago- Sasuke blinked, for he remembered that day well- October sixth, she was running all over

Konoha in oblivious glee and pride in her growth and almost bowling over a member of another prestigious clan, the painfully shy Hyuuga girl who bent herself backwards for the loudmouthed blonde baka, the kyuubi jinchuuriki host. Ketaru, like Sasuke's older itoko Uchiha Shisui, beheld personality traits uncanny to the Uchiha clan- boisterous, outgoing, spontaneous..._happy. _

A member of the elite clan of Uchiha was never to be happy.

Proudly erect twin slide doors made their way into Sasuke's line of vision as he slowly managed to force his way past his fallen kin to approach his home. As he placed a small, childlike hand on the slide he paused, feeling all his dread and fear resurfacing one thousand fold. Swallowing it down- he was, after all, a ninja- he stepped into his home and was immediately engulfed by a terrible feeling of foreboding. Resisting the urge to whimper or call out directly Sasuke made his way to the kitchen where his kaa-san would always be preparing dinner or baking a treat of sorts, usually for his aniki Itachi. Sasuke himself was never fond of sweets.

His kaa-san wasn't there. There was, however, an unfinished meal cooking on the stovetop- the scent of charred pork wafted through the air and found its way to his nose, and a pot of rice boiled over to make a sticky mess all over the pot, stove and part of the floor. When his kaa-san saw this she would throw a fit; rice was always a pain to clean, she would tell him, and the expensive bamboo flooring covering the entire house would not take well to such a mess0 not like it was the expenses that had to be worried about. Like most oka, his kaa-san prided herself in keeping the proverbial fort clean at all times. It was an ability Sasuke never took any interest in until he realized just how in disarray everything appeared without Mikoto's touch. He could remember numerous occasions when his Kaa-san would scold him for coming into the house all muddy or soaking wet, tracking grime all over the floor and leaving a trail of puddles in his wake. He always told her that he was training and it was very important that he did so at every opportunity in order to one day become a strong and fearless shinobi like Itachi. At this she would shake her head and sigh, then smile and dry him with fluffy navy blue towels, all of which were emblazoned with the Uchiha crest just like the shirt on his back, and his Kaa-san's and Oto-san's and aniki's and every other Uchiha in the village.

Turning away from the scene in haste, the study of his oto was next to inspect. Fugaku could easily be found poring over ancient, yellowed scrolls pertaining to the laws and politics of Konoha, forever trying to find a way to bring the Uchiha clan to eternal fame and power. Sasuke had no real opinion in the matter, but he knew for a hardened fact that no matter how cold and emotionless his elder aniki seemed- he despised their father's idealism. Even in his young age of eight, he was more than aware that Itachi was a boy...man...whatever, who appreciated peace above everything else. Hopefully Itachi was faring well under his oto's constant pressure to train whenever possible and make it into ANBU Root. In Fugaku's words, 'As my son, Itachi will become nothing but the best of the best, or my son is not my son."

Mikoto really went at him for that.

Upon seeing the study was also devoid of any human life Sasuke retreated to the dining room, seeing it was empty as well- at this point Sasuke remembered his newfound capabilities as a ninja which included being able to expand his chakra over a distance to test the area around him for the presences of other nin. Doing so he noted in silent despair that the entire mansion was empty...with the exception of a solitary chakra signature in the next building over from the main house.

Sasuke ran along the bamboo deck leading from the main house to any of the other rooms nearby. Stopping at one of many doors which he deduced to be the one with the mystery signature floating behind it he reached up to pull aside the shoji screen. Forcing his feet to move forward, he reached over once again, this time succeeding in sliding the screen over to the right.

Two lifeless bodies lay on the floor. A solitary body stood before them, their face cast in shadows.

"O-Oto...Kaa-san!" Sasuke whispered at first then started screaming at the unholy sight that befell him. Breath started coming quicker to him and in no time at all young Sasuke was gasping for air as his eyes desperately scanned the profile of his parents, not yet developed enough to initiate the sharingan.

"Kaa-san!"

Blinded by rage at the nameless person who stole his parents away, Sasuke ran forward faster than ever before with a fist raised beside his head of spiky ink black hair, intent on striking. When he came to a few feet away a booted leg came out from the surrounding darkness and kicked him straight in the chest, sending him backwards with the force of something incredible. Sasuke landed on the floor on the other side of the room with a small shout, wheezing, trying to get some air back in his lungs. After that had been accomplished he slowly got back to his feet, swaying slightly before regaining his composure. He glared into the darkness before him where he estimated the mystery person's head to be.

"Step away from my Kaa-san, or I will make you."

Silence. Then came a voice, one so familiar, one he had heard his entire life.

"Foolish little brother. You are incapable."

Ice crystals formed within Sasuke's veins.

"...A-aniki?"

His answer was the instantaneous illumination of the dark, a twin pair of painstakingly familiar sharingan which Sasuke had witnessed on numerous occasions.

"Aniki, who did this to Kaa-san and Oto-san? They need help!"

Itachi's sharingan swirled into a new form, a design Sasuke had never witnessed but heard many rumours of- the mangekyo sharingan.

"There is too late for them now."

"Nande..? Nani? Kaa-san and Oto-san were just fine this morning, what went wrong?"

Itachi's left hand, previously hidden in shadows, lifted above his head and behind his back- his prized katana in its grip. The grating sound of metal on metal met Sasuke's sensitive ears as his weapon slid into its sheath. His aniki's face remained as impassive as ever but it was all in the eyes- an impenetrable mask of ice and neutrality. Sharingan enhanced eyes never left Sasuke's face and he looked away from feeling uncomfortable- only to witness a lone trail of blood carving its path along the floor- blood of both his parents intermingled. Blood that will never again be warm with life, blood that will never be pumped by a heart ever again. Sasuke could feel pressure building up inside of him like a balloon about to burst. Eventually, he exploded.

"It was you? How could you do this to them? Kaa-san didn't deserve any of this! Neither did Oto-san! The most they ever did was want the best for you! Oto-san had you train long and hard so that you could become a shinobi worthy of honour and respect! Kaa-san spent half the day making your favourite meal because she knew you would be deployed on a two month long mission tomorrow!

Sasuke watched as Itachi reached into a small bag strapped onto the back of his pants via a belt- Sasuke recognized it as a standard shiruken pouch. Before he could blink, he heard the small death trap of metal embed itself in the wall directly behind him to his left. A second later pain engulfed his left shoulder as blood began to leave his system in short bursts. A small hand clamped itself over the wounded area in an attempt to staunch the bleeding. All at once the realization of what had happened to his entire family- by the member of his family he cherished the most- Sasuke broke. All the fear he had been feeling for the last ten minutes forced itself to the surface and Sasuke stared at his aniki, now a stranger.

"Why did you do it?" Sasuke's voice was small and timid, that of a lost child. Itachi regarded his brother almost disinterestedly before responding at length.

"I wished to test my limits and further myself as a shinobi."

Sasuke blinked.

"That...that's it? That's _all_ their lives meant to you? Were they really so _worthless?_"

A brief pause. Then:

"Hai."

Sasuke fell to his knees and wept. His Kaa-san, he would never see again, tending to his training injuries and supporting him no matter what, even going so far as to make his favourite special sushi once a week as a surprise and praise that she was so very proud of her youngest son. Oto-san who would never ask him about training at the academy or teach him another katon jutsu to further his ninjutsu arsenal. Itachi... well, he was alive, but Sasuke, as far as he was concerned, no longer had a brother either. He died when a monster overtook his conscious and caused him to murder his entire family in cold blood.

Avengement.

Sasuke brushed that thought aside as quickly as it came. How could he possibly defeat the notorious prodigy Uchiha Itachi, heir and the best of his league? That was just it, he couldn't, there was no way. Just then he noted Itachi was slowly making his way closer towards where he was crouched in a corner grieving for lost loved ones. Primal instinct and fear took over and Sasuke scrambled up in a hurry, racing out the door and down the street as fast as he possibly could.

"Please, don't kill me! I don't want to die!"

A swirl of leaves appeared fifty feet or so in front of Sasuke, quickly turning into a whirlwind which revealed Itachi. Sasuke skidded to a halt ten feet in front of his brother, swallowing quite nervously and glancing about for an alternate escape route. When he saw nothing useful he turned his eyes back towards his brother once again.

"You are not worthy of killing."

Sasuke didn't know if that was meant as a compliment or an insult, but held his tongue just the same.

"If you wish for revenge, then stay in this pathetic village. Grow strong and grow to hate me with every fibre of your being. Only then will you have any chance of defeating me."

In front of his older aniki Sasuke watched as he turned around to observe the night sky. A minute later he turned back to look his brother in the eye, his eyes once again glowing an ethereal shade of crimson with the most peculiar design.

"Come face me when you have attained these same eyes I bear now. Only then will we be on equal grounds."

He kept staring at Itachi, speechless and dumbfounded.

Itachi regarded Sasuke once again. "There is, however, a slight catch. Before you attain the mangekyo sharingan, you must first kill your closest friend. That is the only way you will come to exact your revenge. Until then, foolish little brother, hone your skills and prepare for the day when it will come. Farewell."

With that, Itachi turned away once again and this time started walking towards the road which led out of Konoha. He didn't stop or look back even once, but kept steady on his path. In a matter of minutes he was completely out of sight. It was only then that Sasuke truly felt alone. Kaa-san, Oto-san, Shisui-san, Ketaru-chan...none of them were ever going to come back home. Sasuke was the only one left.

From now on, everything Sasuke would do would be going towards Itachi's demise. And he would let nothing stand in his way.

So, here's the prologue. What do you guys think of it so far? Everyone is welcome to message me or comment and let me know how you guys like it, or if there's something you think I should change, or even if any of you have any ideas for something that could happen in the future of this story. I'd love to hear your input.

Thanks for reading! :)


	2. Wake Up

Okay, so here's the official chapter one of my first fanfiction attempt. Enjoy, and please do comment :)

Side note:

Even though this is going to be an Itachi/Hinata fanfiction, there will be a lot of uh...love confusion and such that will happen along the way. This chapter will give you guys the first hint :p

Also, I noticed fanfiction is kinda messing up the formatting on parts of my story ): so, please bear with that x_x

_Somethin' filled up  
My heart with nothin'  
Someone told me not to cry  
But now that I'm older  
My heart's colder  
And I can see that it's a lie_

_-'Wake Up'- Arcade Fire_

Indigo hair, lavender eyes and purple clothes. Some would say Hinata Hyuga looked like a grape, but as for Hinata, she just thought she looked like any average ninja from any average village. A tool trained and educated on how to kill and not be killed. An age-old hitai-ate rested tied around Hinata's neck, proudly displaying the swirling depiction that is the Hidden Village of Leaf. Hinata's trademark lavender irises, trademark to her clan's inherent bloodline, stared at her reflection in a full-length mirror which leaned against the far eastern wall next to a sizeable window, through which early morning sunlight glinted. Birds chattered away gleefully in an ancient sakura tree, one of many on the estate which bloomed magnificently each year.

Another day, another dawn.

Another chance to disappoint her father.

After all these years of training as a ninja, Hinata would have thought it impossible to fail her father beyond a certain extent. Clearly though, she was dead wrong. Even since she started in at the Academy, her father made it a habit to pit her against her younger sister Hanabi, planning for Hinata to begin training her kin at a young age so she could prosper once she joined the academy and proceed beyond that to higher levels. Everything went smoothly at first; Hinata had obeyed her father's will and began to teach Hanabi the basics of the ninja- taijutsu, ninjutsu and genjutsu- in that order. She found her younger sister struggled slightly in the genjutsu department but more than made up for it with her stellar taijutsu and ninjutsu skills. Once Hanabi got a grasp on the various hand signs, how to direct flow of chakra and learn basic moves such as the _kage bunshin no jutsu_ and, more importantly, her clan's _Juken_, Hanabi began to grow at a rapid speed and quickly overtook Hinata, even though she had studied hard and practiced even harder every day whether or not she was in the academy.

When Hanabi graduated from the academy at eight years old- three years after she was enrolled by her father, Hiashi- Hinata started to be ignored by her father completely in favour of training Hanabi as often as possible because she proved to be a much more promising ninja than she herself would ever become. Ever since that day, Hinata had slowly but surely been falling into a seemingly bottomless pit of despair.

Today at age eighteen, she was nothing more than a mediocre ninja at best. Her sister on the other hand was already advancing into jutsu known only by the shinobi of her clan aged twenty-five or older. She knew she was a failure, how could such an accusation be thwarted when the evidence was standing in her place, staring desolately into a mirror instead of training rigorously in one of Konoha's many training grounds like every other ninja would be?

Perhaps she knew it wasn't worth it to even bother.

A gentle tap was issued to the invisible side of Hinata's bedroom door, snapping her out of her depressing train of thought. She wasn't expecting any visitors, especially not so early in the morning. Because of this fact, she raised both her hands into the proper hand seal and uttered one word quietly.

"Byakugan."

Hinata became immediately aware of the feeling of all the veins and arteries around her eyes bulge out all at once. As this happened, the other side of the door became clearly visible- Hanabi was waiting on the other side, Naruto was also there standing by her side fidgeting and looking around anxiously like he would have preferred to be anywhere but where he was at this current point in time. At the sight of Naruto she blushed lightly before catching herself in the act and forcing it away. Moving gracefully, Hinata stepped around her bed and to the door, opening it in one swift motion.

"Ohayou Naruto, Hanabi." She glanced at her younger sister who looked so like herself, but so different at the same time. "What is the meaning of this, Hanabi? Is something wrong?"

Hanabi shook her head. "No. Naruto-san here just informed me he has something of great importance to speak to you about." Hinata nodded. "I see." She turned her lavender gaze upon Naruto who started slightly now that he was under her full attention. "Are you feeling alright, Naruto-kun? You seem to be acting quite strange this morning."

Her blonde-haired comrade's eyes widened comically as he stuttered an excuse. "Ah, gomen, Hinata-chan! I'm just eh, really excited for lunch; I heard Ichiraku is coming out with a new recipe today and I just really wanna try it out before it's all gone!" he hoped that was a believable enough excuse.

Naruto held his breath in anticipation as Hinata smiled serenely, closing her eyes. "Oh Naruto-kun, you don't need to worry about that. You're always the first person in line and Ichiraku's best customer. I'm positive you will be the first to taste it no matter what."

He scratched the back of his head, trying not to wince. "I suppose you're right. Arigatou, Hinata-chan."

Naruto swallowed audibly and glanced over briefly at her sister before looking at Hinata once again. "Ne, Hinata-chan, would we be able to speak in private?"

Hinata's eyes widened slightly before she quickly regained her composure. "Of course, I do not see how that would be a problem." She caught Naruto glancing almost inconspicuously behind herself into her bedroom. Before she could say anything about what he was implying, Hanabi smacked him upside the head and adding a small bit of chakra for good measure, almost sending him flying face first into Hinata's chest. Hinata blushed furiously at the thought of such a mortifying event while Naruto regained his balance and glared threateningly at her sister who was glaring back at him with equal force.

"Ouch, you baka! What was that for?" Naruto began to rub the back of his head again, this time to relieve pain instead of stress or anxiety. Hanabi's glare increased with Naruto's words.

"Don't you dare call me a baka, dobe! Do you not realize what you just did? You most certainly _cannot _speak with my sister 'privately'-" she made finger quotations –"in the confines of her bedroom! Have you any idea how...dirty that is?"

Naruto shot her a dirty look.

"Don't you dare call me dobe! Sasuke-teme does that all the time as it is, and it gets soooo annoying! It makes me want to punch his face in and break his pretty boy image, but the only reason I don't is because Sakura-chan would beat me black and blue, and I have a mission in a week so I can't be anything but in top condition. The last thing I need is for you to strut around all peacock-like and be all...peacock-y, and ruin my chances with Hinata-chan!"

Hinata cocked her head to the left and blinked in slight confusion at the sudden turn of conversation. This was certainly strange. " Chances of what, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto halted mid-insult and promptly snapped his jaws shut. Hanabi giggled maliciously as his cheeks turned the brightest shade of red she had ever seen on anyone. At a loss for words she sent Naruto a pitying look and then raised her eyebrows delicately at her sister, silently asking her to leave the premises. Like the intelligent young ninja she was, Hanabi caught on quickly and smirked before turning away.

"Alright, alright, ill leave the two of you alone. But I suggest you go out to the gardens or something, father will not be at all pleased if he hears of you and a boy in your room, _alone_."

Naruto shot Hanabi another dirty look and Hinata nodded slightly. She was still confused about why this blonde-haired, blue eyed boisterous ninja was coming to her out of everyone. Perhaps he wanted to ask her out on a date?

No. That couldn't possibly be it.

Hinata had the biggest crush on Naruto for the longest time, ever since she was enrolled in the academy and saw him for the first time- a relatively short five year old with the spikiest hair she had ever seen on anyone, save for the youngest Uchiha, brother to the heir of his clan. All the girls and possibly even a couple of the males in her academy class adored _him, _claiming both his appearance and prodigious skills were unparalleled. She could recall all too easily every single day she was in the academy the entire class was guaranteed to hear both of her friends Sakura and Ino battle it out with words and some hair pulling, each claiming Sasuke was in love with one of them and not the other.

"_Ino-pig, shut up! You know as well as I do Sasuke has no interest in you at all! Just you watch, he's going to be placed in my team, not yours!"_

_A young Sakura smiled smugly and crossed her arms. Ino on the other hand, grew red with fury and stomped her foot childishly._

_ The blonde-haired girl huffed angrily and began waving her arms around dramatically. "Are you crazy? There's no way he could ever like you. I mean, come on, your hair is pink. _Pink! _And your forehead is so huge; it could be used as Konoha's largest billboard to promote that Karanawa's Everlasting Lip Gloss that all the women in town are using. But it's not like you would know that, you never wear makeup or do anything nice with your hair. Speaking of which, I heard Sasuke likes girls with long hair. Yours barely even reaches your shoulders." Ino reached out and flipped some pink strands of hair which barely brushed the pinkette's small, slender shoulders. The smaller girl frowned sadly before catching herself. Trying to stand tall and be brave she straightened her shoulders and glared at Ino. _

"_He would never want you. Who would ever want someone who is always so loud and annoying? All _you _ever do is run up to him and scream 'Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun! Come sit beside meeeee! I'm soooo much better than everyone else; you _have _to like me and no one else!"_

_Ino's mouth opened and she gaped at the pinkette, slightly offended. "You do the same thing, billboard-brow."_

_Sakura gasped allowed and tried to push the blonde away. "Ugh, I do not!"_

_ Hinata watched the scene unfold from her assigned seat near the back of the class. Hinata supposed she could relate to how her two friends felt, but then again no one else besides her liked Naruto; all they saw was the demon kyuubi and not the innocent small blonde boy with no parents who only wanted more than anything to make friends and be happy once again. He had saved her from bullies once but gotten beaten up because of it, something she would always feel guilty for. Naruto was a good soul and she only wished that more people besides her and Iruka-sensei could see it. Turning Naruto's way she saw that he was also watching the squabble between the blonde and the pinkette. He must have sensed he was being watched because he looked above their heads and his eyes met Hinata's. Once lavender met sky blue, Hinata's face became as red as it always did whenever she saw him or he saw her. But there was a small smile on Naruto's face, nothing offending, so she smiled ever so shyly and raised a hand in a timid wave. The smile that broke out on Naruto's face from her gesture of friendliness was enough to make Hinata happier than ever before for weeks on end- for Naruto had smiled a wide smile, a true smile- not one of those fake sunny smiles that broke her heart because she could see right through them. She of all people had make Naruto Uzumaki happy. _

Hinata still like always had the same everlasting crush on Naruto, but the only difference between her academy days and now was her affection for Naruto had matured and grown into a form of love. She couldn't say one hundred per cent for sure exactly what form of love it was, but Hinata looked up to Naruto because she saw him as a hero and an immensely strong person who was always there for anyone who needed his help, no matter what or who he would be there in under an instant. Whether Naruto knew it or not, he had a family network in Konoha which would never break apart from him no matter what happened.

Stepping out her room and sliding shut the shoji screen Hinata looked into Naruto's eyes and tilted her head ever so slightly. "Come, Naruto-kun. Even though I know you mean well, it _would _be seen as inappropriate for the two of us to be seen alone in my bedroom. The gardens are a gorgeous common area where we can speak in private and not have to worry about being spoken ill of."

Turning away as she began to walk across to the other side of her rather large house Hinata failed to see the blush that painted itself across the blonde's whiskered cheeks as he rubbed at the back of his head in a shy manner.

"H-hai, Hinata-chan."

Hinata smiled to herself as she led the way to her family's majestic gardens. Who would have ever thought Naruto would suddenly be acting so shy around her? It really was strange, but she was willing to see where these opportunities lead them. Finally closing in on a particularly ornate shoji screen Hinata slid it open and began descending a small bamboo staircase. Reaching the bottom she turned around and giggled slightly as Naruto stood still at the shoji screen gaping in wonder and amazement. After a couple of minutes he gathered himself and made his way down the stairs just as Hinata did- carefully, so as not to disrupt any of the delicate and exotic plants growing at his feet.

Naruto walked over to where Hinata stood and breathed out softly.

"This is beautiful, Hinata-chan. I kinda wish my apartment had plants like these, but they'd just die every time I left for missions." Hinata laughed softly at his words and smiled up at him.

"Well Naruto-kun, you could always buy some plastic or material flowers. They look almost just as pretty and they won't ever die, no matter how long you are gone for."

To her amusement he seemed to actually be thinking about it. "Hn, Hinata-chan, that's actually not a bad idea. I'll look into it and see what I can do."

"If you need help, I am more than happy to lend a hand, should you need it."

Her visitor smiled softly as he looked down on Hinata- certain emotions lighting in his beautiful blue eyes that had her stomach tying itself in knots of anticipation and her heart beating just a bit faster. From liking Naruto all these years, Hinata was well aware of what these bodily signs meant- she was going to faint. Hinata held strong though. When she was younger she would always be fainting around Naruto- something which was highly embarrassing and probably not so good for her health. So one day after she fainted from yet another encounter with Naruto, she decided to do everything in her power to keep from fainting again. It took a lot of time and effort, but she found the more she was exposed to Naruto and talked to him, she came to know him as a person and not just a boy she admired for his strength and courage. Over the weeks she hadn't been fainting, Naruto actually noticed and praised her for her strength- a preposterous concept to Hinata, being strong- but she could feel it was the start of something great. Maybe with Naruto's help she could become the kunoichi she always dreamed of.

Her father wouldn't believe his eyes if he ever saw his eldest daughter actually becoming proficient in the ninja way; dealing out senbon and shiruken and kunai like her life depended on it (which in most cases, it did), and performing jutsu which would make everyone in her clan recognize the shy indigo-haired female who had flown under the radar for so long. Even if Naruto didn't realize it, Hinata owed him so much for being there for her all the time. They had a relationship not quite unlike that of a dating couple: they loved one another and would do anything for the other. The only question was that of just how far this love stretched, something Hinata hoped to discover in the near future.

This thought brought Hinata back on track with why exactly she was standing here with Naruto in the first place. Taking a deep breath and then releasing it, she opened her mouth and asked the question which would change everything between her and Naruto, and many, many things to come.

"So Naruto-kun, what was it you wanted to speak with me about? You really did seem quite worried earlier, are you feeling okay?"

Naruto blanched slightly. "Yes, yes Hinata-chan, I'm more than fine...in fact, I'm great!" he offered her a wide smile which she recognized as one he sent out when he was actually feeling uncomfortable or awkward. She softened for him even more, already feeling concerned about what had her friend feeling so out of his league.

"It's just that, well, you know, I've been thinking about us a lot lately."

Hinata blinked, a little shocked. She managed to stutter out an "O-oh?"

Blonde spiky hair bobbed up and down in a silent nod of confirmation.

"Yep."

A new kind of awkward silence blanketed them both as Hinata waited for her friend to speak and Naruto just stopped talking. Wanting to hear what he was getting at, she prodded him along gently.

"And? What became of all this thinking? There's no need to be quite so worried Naruto-kun, I won't bite." She softened her words with a gentle smile, closing her eyes in the way he looked so shy and well...she just thought it was adorable.

He cleared his throat quietly and swallowed, most likely from nerves.

"Uh, ri-right. The reason why I came to see you, Hinata-chan, is because, well..."

Hinata knew pushing him more at this point would clam him up so she stood there before him with her hands clasped in front of her, waiting serenely for him to say what must have been on his mind for the longest time.

"."

She paused. What?

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun...may you please repeat that again?" she offered him another small smile of encouragement.

Naruto gave her a pleading look like that of a desperate puppy, and Hinata knew she had just asked him o do the hardest thing he had ever done in his entire life- including defeating Pain of the Akatsuki. She tried not to wince at both the situation she had put him in and memories of the past and instead apologized.

"Gomen, but I really didn't hear what you just said, it was so rushed. If you would feel better in doing so, we can have this conversation at a later date."

Naruto's eyes widened and he shook his head in haste.

"No, no! this...this has to be said."

Hinata nodded in understanding, her long indigo catching the light and shining with each movement. Naruto sucked in a deep breath, counted to twenty in his head and then turned to face the Hyuga in front of him.

"I would be honoured if you would agree to let me date you and become my girlfriend."

Hinata's world shattered.

Well, wasn't this irony if she ever saw it? Hinata knew what her answer was going to be right as soon as Naruto asked her, but before she could tell him she began to feel light-headed and swooned ever so slightly.

Before she knew what happened, her world went black.


	3. Closed Eyes Still Look Forward

Here's chapter three, guys. I came to the realization today that I may have kind of started this story off with a bang and it may be moving a tad too fast. If anyone feels this way please leave me a message and I'll try to slow it down a bit. It's just that I forsee this becoming a very long fanfic and a lot of stuff is going to happen and the only way I can get started in on it asap is to jump right in.

Also this chapter is fairly longer than the others, now that I finally got the ball rolling. Another thing is that partway through writing this chapter I randomly settled into a comfortable writing pattern that I find suits both Naruto and Hinata, even Hanabi- please keep in mind that with this story, Naruto and Hinata are eighteen years old and more mature than they're made out to be in the anime or manga. Also, mature is kinda just what my writing style leans towards naturally, so I guess it all works out that way :p

Please enjoy and comment/rate/subscribe :D

"_From the darkness I came  
In my hand was a torch that I found along the way.  
And in the distance, I saw a house with a light that lit the porch  
I found a place to rest my head."_

_-'Closed Eyes Still Look Forward'- Chiodos_

Hinata awoke to a bright light which burned the retinas of her eyes. Closing them tightly and emitting a sound not unlike a hiss, she curled up on her side and stuffed her face in a fragrant pillow.

Darkness, what bliss you are, she thought contentedly.

In the distance she could hear the muted voices of what sounded like Naruto and Hanabi, both of which were standing outside her room again. The only difference was that this time neither of them were throwing nasty insults at the other and going for the proverbial jugular. As a matter of fact, they seemed to be acting quite civil.

_Quite the feat for Naruto, _a tiny voice inside her mind whispered amusedly. Hinata blinked at herself for thinking such a thing, however fleeting the thought was.

It was a well known fact all throughout Konoha that Naruto was as hyperactive as they come; it was almost an impossibility to get him to settle down for anything. The only real exceptions to this were depressing events such as the death of the fourth Hokage, whom Naruto had been close to. But Hinata didn't like to think about things like that; she preferred to look forward to the future and all the things it had to offer. Even though she was low on self confidence, it was high time she did something about it instead of letting her father walk all over her like a tatami mat and go along his merry way. As for Hanabi, Hinata envied her the slightest bit for gaining so much tutelage under her father's hand and prospering so well, seeing as she herself progressed all too slowly and just didn't seem to be cut out for becoming a successful ninja. But now that she thought about it, Hinata came to the conclusion that her father just never realized the reason why she failed him so was because what she really needed was _motivation. _

As far back as she could remember any memories Hinata could manage to dredge up included nothing but stress, pressure and a starving lack of self esteem. Born as heiress to her clan, she had a devastatingly huge responsibility placed upon her shoulders simply because of her DNA. When her father enrolled her in the Academy it was all she could manage to keep up with the rest of the class in terms of growth and skill. Obviously her father had seen her failure as both a ninja and his daughter. Therefore he turned to her younger sister as a replacement. In all honesty Hinata couldn't blame Hanabi for being the chosen one. She could see, in a way, where her father came from- the heiress to one of Konoha's elite clans could not be a weak, shy little girl with no skills to show. Hanabi and Hinata were alike in most ways, but polar opposites in many more. Given Hanabi's drive and overabundance of motivation it was no wonder how she turned out the way she did.

Her father may not believe in her, but Naruto did.

Naruto had always been a rock of sorts to Hinata, even as a young child. She could have a bad day and just want to give up, but then she would think of a young Naruto's smiling face at the Academy and her day would instantly turn a little better. The only thing holding her back from truly succeeding was the ridiculous amount of family tension linked between her father and herself...even Hanabi wasn't exempt from the awkward moments and cold words her father would issue in her direction before turning around and pulling a complete one eighty on her sister. Hinata could feel everything piling up on top of her and compounding, compressing, and getting heavier with every breath she took. It was like she was completely immersed in cement and there was no way to escape.

Hinata was pulled from her deep thoughts when the shoji screen to her bedroom slid open and Hanabi entered. She was moving almost silently and stealthily as well, and paused for a second when she saw Hinata was watching her. Clearing her throat lightly, Hanabi quickly straightened her posture and brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. She observed Hinata from her place at the foot of her bed, silently noting her sister appeared to be greatly unsettled.

She really didn't have to guess what the cause of Hinata's stress was- she could feel it every time she and her sister locked eyes- it was like a curtain was being pulled over her emotions, but like with a curtain, Hanabi could always see a faint trace of whatever was lurking behind. She knew Hinata always went through a tough time as a child. Even now, their father ignored Hinata completely in turn for shoving his efforts down her throat and forcing her to train continuously and become ever stronger.

The truth was, Hanabi would much rather be a crappy ninja than live the way she was now; with a father who didn't give a shit about his kid and a sister who resented her on some level and was more like a stranger than a family member.

"How are you feeling?"

She watched as her eldest sister stayed silent for a time. Hanabi couldn't really blame her- the two of them rarely ever spoke due to training and the like. Even when they did talk to one another it was always brief and awkward.

Hinata shifted, looking slightly uncomfortable.

Hanabi waited patiently.

Hinata glanced up at her sister.

Hanabi met her eyes.

Hinata looked away again and closed her eyes.

Hanabi sighed.

Hinata opened her eyes once again and began to stare at something across the room.

Hanabi followed her gaze and found she was looking at a family photo taken long ago- Hinata, their father and herself standing just outside of training ground 3 of Konoha. Hanabi must have been about four at the time, when she had just started being eased into the ninja way by her older sister, who she used to call sensei for the fun of it. Despite what their father may have believed, Hinata was a fantastic ninja. If she had only trained more and harder she would have surpassed herself in skill years ago. She could see that Hinata held awesome potential behind that mask of sadness and lack of self worth. Their father had somehow managed to separate the two of them, sisters- a bond that should have been unbreakable. It was at that very moment Hanabi came to a life-changing decision.

She was going to kick her dad's ass.

How dare he treat his eldest daughter like shit because she wasn't perfect? No one was. It wasn't her fault the circumstances under which she was trained took everything out of her and gave nothing back. Her father was unforgiving and it showed greatly in the way Hinata viewed herself: a waste of space.

"Hinata, I-"

"I'm feeling fine, thank you." Her tone was slightly reserved and defensive, not at all like Hinata. Man, their father was a fuckup.

"Hinata, we need to talk."

"What about?"

"Everything."

Hinata looked up at her sister then...really looked. Hanabi was standing before with a steel look of sheer determination overtaking every inch of her face. Even her shoulders were set straighter than usual and her posture gave off an air of importance. Hinata sighed mutely and inclined her head. Despite all the family awkwardness that had surrounded her for years, something had to give. Apparently Hanabi had a change of heart if she actually wanted to do something about this craziness befalling them all.

"Hai...I know. But can it possibly wait? I can hear Naruto outside; I should go and calm him down." True to her words, Naruto could be heard rampaging in the hall muttering things about annoying sisters and his right to be able to see if the people he cared about were okay. 'Baka' was uttered many, many times. Hinata had to force back a small smile. Naruto was the only person in her life who would never change, and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Hanabi nodded. "Alright." Hinata stood up from her previous position on her bed and began the short walk to her shoji screen. When she went to pass Hanabi however, a gentle hand was placed on her shoulder.

"Hinata..."

She looked down at her younger sister, wondering what was going through her mind. Hanabi was never like this. Question marks must have been hovering in her eyes because Hanabi smiled in an uncharacteristically soft manner and squeezed her shoulder lightly.

"Just...I want you to know that I know you were alone for a long time. I should have been there for you. I don't know how I allowed Father to pull us apart like this, but I want to rekindle our relationship, remember how great it was?" Hanabi smiled wider this time, a true smile, although her eyes still looked sad...haunted. "But I've decided it's time for this to end. I'm sick of Father training me to become his trophy pawn. It sickens me."

"Hanabi, where is all this coming from? You seemed fine with everything before..." Hinata still looked as confused as ever. Hanabi sighed. She was right.

"I know, I know. It's just; whenever you first started training me I was so excited and thrilled to be spending quality time with my big sister. On top of that I was becoming a ninja, something I always wanted. When I surpassed you I thought that was a good thing and you were proud of me for it so I saw no problem. Then when Father took me under his wing and trained me even more rigorously, I became even stronger. I was so happy to be meeting my one goal in life- to become an extraordinary ninja my sister would be proud of. It wasn't until later on when Father started ignoring you completely that I realized just how messed up everything had become."

Hinata was quiet for a moment as she digested everything her sister just said. "I see."

Hanabi frowned slightly as she regarded her sister.

"I understand completely if you need time to come to terms with everything. However, I have a proposition for you, one I think you'll be willing to accept."

Hinata looked at her sister and squinted slightly as though it would help her see through Hanabi's cryptic words.

"I want to help you train."

Hinata blinked.

"You're willing to do that? But I'm not strong enough to ever reach your level; my progress is much too slow. Father made that much clear."

Hanabi felt a sudden tsunami of rage overtake her. She despised their father for making her sister feel like she was worthless and essentially a waste of space. When she kicked his ass, she'd do it _hard._

"Father, for lack of better terms, is a douche bag."

Hinata gasped and her eyes widened at her coarse language. "_Hanabi_! Don't say such things!"

Hanabi glared up at her sister. Her hand was no longer resting on her sister's shoulders. Instead her arms were crossed in defiance. "Why not? It's true, he _is._ Just look at what he did to us! He separated us; we used to be so close. I know you missed this as much as I have. I may have been naïve enough to leave you once, but I'm not doing it again."

Hinata sighed and sent her sister a sidelong glance. "Hanabi..."

"What?"

"I agree our father faulted us in many ways...but, such vulgar language isn't needed." She sent her sister a stern look for good measure.

Hanabi rolled her eyes. "Oh Hinata, you're so formal. Liven up a little."

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Ill have you know I _liven it up_ quite a bit."

Her sister smiled. "How? By reading your favourite books time after time and occasionally training or sitting out by the waterfall to practice your _Juken_? Come on sis, you have to get out more and _live._ Fall in love. Whatever. Just get out in the world and have fun. Live is too short to waste, especially as a kunoichi."

Naruto.

Just how did she care for him? Yes she loved him and she harboured a crush on him for quite some time, but as she came to know him better her love for him changed in some way...perhaps platonically. He was always there for her and helping her along, boosting her when she needed it. He was a rock to her, someone she could always rely on and trust and have faith in no matter what the situation was. He was like...

A brother.

A very loud, very boisterous, very caring brother.

Hinata glanced at her sister and offered a shrug and a small smile.

"Ne, Hanabi, I think I will be holding off on the falling in love until a later date."

Her sister looked offended. "But why? Naruto is _right there outside that door._ Are you telling me you hold no feelings for him whatsoever? You only crushed on him for your entire life."

Hinata smiled. "Don't get me wrong, I do hold feelings for Naruto. Just not in the way I previously thought."

Hanabi stared on, face blank.

Hinata sighed. "It's complicated. But everything will work out in the end. I have to go talk to Naruto now, there is something important we need to discuss."

Her sister nodded. "Have fun," she added sarcastically. Hinata rolled her eyes slightly and shoved her sister out of her room. Hanabi collided into Naruto's chest with more force than Hinata originally intended. She sputtered and Naruto almost toppled backwards but caught his balance and Hanabi before she fell over. In short, all she saw was a flurry of obnoxiously bright orange mixed in with long but dark brown hair before Hanabi and Naruto stood beside each other awkwardly, trying to look at anything and everything but each other.

Two minutes passed.

Naruto, as ready to bite the bullet as ever, finally turned to the younger Hyuga. "Gomen Hanabi." He tried to keep a straight face- Hinata could tell by the telltale twitching of his lips- but couldn't keep it in and burst out laughing loudly. "Kami, that was hilarious. You should have seen your face!" Having said that he started up all over again and doubled over from the intensity of his newfound amusement. Hanabi stood silently beside him still, fuming. Hinata knew what would happen after this. Regardless of whether or not she and her sister were close she knew of her sister's legendary temper which rivalled even Sakura's.

"You just shut the hell up, teme! It's not like your face was any different!" Hanabi then generously reanimated what must have been the blonde's reaction with complete over-exaggeration.

Naruto puffed up indignantly. "I did _not _look like that!"

Hanabi smiled childishly. "Yes you did."

"Did not!"

"Did _too_," she sang.

The two supposed teenagers standing before Hinata's very eyes squabbled back and forth for a few more minutes until Naruto couldn't seem to be able to take it anymore. "_Jeez, _you're annoying." Naruto frowned and crossed his arms, sulking. He then paused briefly and added a kindly "Baka!" for good measure. Hanabi merely smiled sweetly in his direction- the calm before the storm. Hinata decided to intervene before she became reduced to having to scrub Naruto's blood off the walls, floor and ceiling, and shortly thereafter her fingernails. Every ninja knew just how long that task alone could take; and it was absolutely _dreadful_.

"Uh, Naruto? Hanabi?"

Two heads snapped in her direction at precisely the same moment and both wearing identical looks of fury, giving her chills.

"_What_?"

Hinata swallowed silently as she regarded the angry pair in front of her with wide eyes. This was a side of both Naruto and Hanabi that she had never quite seen before. It was really starting to unnerve her. To save herself from further pondering she turned briskly to Naruto in particular.

"I do believe there is something we still need to talk about."

Naruto's face morphed almost immediately into recognition and he nodded imperceptibly before turning his back on Hanabi in a blatant manner. Behind his back her younger sister made motions of slitting her throat before imitating a punch to the back of Naruto's unsuspecting head. Hinata couldn't help but giggle slightly before quickly covering it up with a fake cough.

"Shall we?"

Naruto nodded again and began to trail behind Hinata as she lead the way to another part of the Hyuga household- the butterfly conservatory.

From the outside was a spectacular view. Multiple native Japanese trees sprouted up in a courtyard of sorts in the middle of the Hyuga compound; completely surrounded by giant panes of glass so that this natural beauty could be observed from any and every angle. Due to this and a skylight which stretched completely over the entire area of fifty by fifty feet squared reflections and colours of thousands of butterflies and blossoming trees splashed across the polished bamboo floors in a vivid and enrapturing display of a gorgeousness that only Mother Nature herself could accomplish.

Stepping up to a pane of glass Hinata placed her hand on it and watched as a butterfly of gold and teal fluttered by, trailed by a dozen or so other exotic species whose names Hinata could list in her sleep. Even though she was a ninja, a career which specialized in brutal combat and bloodshed, she found taking on a hobby of serene nature helped immensely in countering the overwhelming emotions which sometimes overtook her or caught her off guard when she dwelled on things too much. A delicate part of life such as a butterfly embodied everything Hinata wished to be- graceful in both combat and mannerisms, beautiful from the soul out, and most of all strong. Butterflies were capable of flying thousands of miles in a matter of weeks in order to breed and ultimately die. Hinata could relate to this insect- she was more than willing to travel all across the world if it meant doing something to help one of her friends or the man she loved- if she was ever to find a man _to_ love. Sometimes she felt she was truly destined to remain cold and alone, chained to a clan which deemed her unworthy. Times had changed though. Now she had Hanabi to fall back on; with her sister's strength she knew that if she couldn't pull through by herself that Hanabi would lend a hand.

Speaking of which-

"I am sorry about Hanabi." Hinata spoke to Naruto without looking at him. Her attention still on the conservatory, but her concentration was on the start of their conversation. "She can be very...trying at times. It is in her nature to be defiant and that is something that even my father could not control, however hard he may have tried."

Naruto shook his head. "It's no problem at all, Hinata-chan. It's fun to get her mad, she acts like a pouty kid who didn't get their candy."

"She turned fifteen in March."

"That would explain everything!" Naruto smiled brightly at his intelligence and reached behind his head with both arms, swaying from side to side slightly like a giddy child.

Hinata pulled her eyes away from their previous focal point to look at Naruto warningly. "She may be a few years younger than us, but she is also wiser than most. Our clan in involved in many diplomatic affairs. In the way we were raised we had no choice but to grow up quickly or fall behind and lose everything." She knew that feeling of loss all too well and would never wish it upon anyone. In a way she was glad it was her who failed training and her father; it would have killed her to see her sister be abandoned and left alone to find her way in the dark without a helping hand.

Naruto's voice was quiet when he answered a few moments later.

"I know what it's like to lose everything." His arms were still behind his head but resting near his ears instead of being held up, like he had lost all strength in his arms. Sky blue eyes darkened with sadness rested on shadows of butterflies which flitted on the floor all around them, as did a heavy silence. Somehow Hinata knew he was remembering stories of his parents Kushina and Minato Uzumaki and all the times as a young child that he had been an outcast to his own village. Moments later his head rose once more and he stared Hinata right in the eyes with confidence and determination. "But I also know what it's like to have friends, people you can rely on. Teachers and comrades and even strangers. There may be some people in life that won't care about your wellbeing, but for every one person like that there's a thousand more who are willing to risk everything just to see you smile and be happy." He smiled at Hinata. "And I'm one of those people, the ones who want to help and support you. I want to help you succeed and become everything you ever wanted to be in life...I want to _be _a part of your life."

Hinata glanced up at Naruto and smiled serenely. "You always have been a big part of my life, Naruto, even in the Academy. Every time I could put a smile on your face it made me so happy. I was glad I could make life more bearable for you, even if it was just for an instant."

"I appreciated it a lot, even back then. All I knew of you is that you were really; _really_ shy but I liked how you would go out of your way just to look at me and smile or wave. It made me feel like a person, not a monster like everyone else thought I was." He smiled small and his eyes softened slightly. "Everyone else at the academy drooled over Sasuke-teme all the time, especially Ino and Sakura-chan. Even though I had a huge crush on her for all those years I just felt comforted that someone wasn't out to get me but to help me instead."

"What is going on between you and Sakura-chan?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't really know. I guess I just moved on without really realizing it until now. I love her still; I always will, but as a comrade instead of a lover or girlfriend or whatever you want to call it. Besides, even though she denies it I know Sakura-chan is still in love with Sasuke. It's so obvious, it's not even funny. In fact, it makes me wanna puke all over the place and _die_."

"Is that also how you feel about me, Naruto-kun?"

He paused. "I-I don't even really know anymore. I didn't think so at first because of how close our relationship has become over the years; we were there for each other and we have a bond that's pretty strong. I do have feelings for you on some level; I won't lie to you about that. Something like a small crush I guess." At this point Naruto was blushing and rubbing the back of his head like he always did when he got nervous- old habits do die hard after all. "But now I'm not so sure about what I want to do anymore...I'm confused." He grinned sheepishly. Hinata returned the favour before turning back to watch more butterflies flutter about.

"Hai, I know exactly what you mean. I share both your confusion and emotions." Even though Naruto couldn't see Hinata blushed lightly. "To be quite honest, I had a crush on you since our early days in the Academy. Over the years my fondness of you remained, but I feel like my connection to you has shifted somehow into something more platonic than romantic, something I cannot really explain without going into great detail."

Behind her, Naruto listened intently with his head slightly bowed. They were at a mutual agreement, or so it seemed. The only question was what they were to do about it. He voiced this question and Hinata turned around to face him with her head tilted slightly to the right and her hands clasped delicately in front of her. Her pearly eyes stared straight into his sky blue ones and Naruto could feel that whatever she was about to say would be for the better of them both.

"I think that for the time being we should just take it very slowly. For the time being it seems we both hold for the most part platonic feelings of deep friendship for one another. However I don't think we should rule out the possibility of us becoming an item in the future." Naruto couldn't help but look on with a small burst of adoration as pink tinted her cheeks as she spoke. Hinata would always be like this- he wouldn't have it any other way.

She held up a finger, as though in reprimand and closed her eyes briefly before opening them and meeting his eyes once again. "But if one of us by chance finds ourselves in a situation where we discover feelings for someone else I will not hold anything against you. Matters of the heart cannot be chosen by the mind and as you are a dear friend to me I will be supportive of you and happy for your happiness no matter what the situation may be."

That sounded reasonable to Naruto. He would only wish for the same if Hinata-chan found her heart to be resting in another's hands. However small or large the feelings of sadness or jealousy may last as least he would know she was being properly taken care of and loved like she deserved to be.

"Sounds like a plan to me, Hinata-chan." He grinned a fox-like grin and extended a hand to Hinata in a playful manner. "So, we have ourselves a deal?"

Hinata couldn't help but smile herself as she placed her sizeably smaller hand in his larger, battle-roughened one.

"Hai," she said, locking eyes with Naruto. "We do."


	4. 8 Years of Silence

Welcome to chapter four. I found this chapter to be slightly awkward to write because I got stuck in a few places, but oh well.

*I'm so, so, so sorry for the long wait in between updates. I've been working a lot and I've just been really busy with a bunch of stuff this week and didn't have much time to write more than a few paragraphs, but I just spend a good solid three hours finishing this chapter up for you guys :)

please review, I love hearing your feedback.

"_Feeling trapped even in my own skin  
Are you what you dreamt of becoming?  
The man I grew up with doesn't exist  
In his place stands a sad hypocrite"_

_-'8 Years of Silence'- The Scene Aesthetic_

Shortly after Naruto and Hinata formed their unusual truce a branch family member arrived- hurriedly leading no one but Hiashi Hyuga, of all people. Hinata could feel familiar feelings of deteriorating happiness and the onset of something terrible forming in the pit of her stomach. When her father sought her out the results were never pleasant and she was more than certain this time would be no different. She glanced over at Naruto briefly for silent support but he was preoccupied with studying her father- this was the first time the two of them were to meet.

Hiashi strode to where his daughter and her despicable acquaintance resided. He regarded Naruto with a distasteful expression which caused Hinata to rile up in anger- something that rarely ever happened. It was one thing to degrade her but when it came to her friends and others she really cared about that was where she drew the line.

Hinata was next in line to be placed under her father's cold, emotionless stare. Within its depths she could easily spy flecks of anger, disappointment and pity.

_Pity?_

How pathetic did her father think she was if he stopped so low as to feel such a degrading emotion? That foreign emotion of anger made itself known once again, multiplying in intensity. She had always known her father disliked her very existence but she would never have guessed that taking a single moment to peer into his eyes would divulge such a vast accumulation of negative feelings and thoughts from him to her. Hinata didn't quite know what to think under the circumstances but her father had obviously already come to her with a plan in mind.

"Hanabi informed me she plans to train you in Juken." Hiashi's eyes never strayed from Hinata's face as he spoke, displeasure seeping into his tone of voice until it was undeniable.

Hinata felt a new kind of dread creep in on her as she silently berated her younger sister for her rash decision making and spontaneity. Kami only knew where this confrontation would land her.

"Hai, Father. Hanabi offered to train me in many ways so that I will become a more proficient ninja."

Hiashi curled his lip at her. "You have no reason whatsoever to take Hanabi up on her ridiculous request. You had the chance to become an exceptional kunoichi many years ago and make your family and clan proud- and instead of priding the Hyuga name you only brought failure upon yourself and everyone else." Something unidentifiable passed over Hiashi's face for a mere instant before it was erased from view. "You are a disgrace to both my family and my clan. Your mother must be rolling over in her grave at your pathetic displays of so-called battle. Konoha should never have graduated you from the Academy, as you are evidently lacking in every aspect a ninja is considered to be a ninja."

Hinata had been exposed to cruel words and harsh insults for the entirety of her childhood, but never had she been so blatantly ridiculed by anyone in her life. She supposed she should have expected behaviour such as this but thought her father had completely forgotten about her existence. Unfortunately she was wrong.

Her father was still watching her closely when Hinata chanced a glance at him a few moments later. The cold, unforgiving gleam to his eyes had her shrinking back inside herself, something that happened quite often whenever she was in his presence.

"How dare you say anything like that to Hinata-chan!"

Hinata blinked in surprise at the unexpected outburst of rage which came from beside her. Turning her head to the right she saw Naruto standing tensely, his hands tensing into fists which more than likely held an unquenchable thirst for ramming themselves through the side of Hiashi's head. The gaze of the man in question slowly slid to the left until cold lavender eyes finally came to rest moments later upon Konoha's jinchuuriki host of the Kyuubi. He knew of the obnoxious blonde before him but did not care to remember his name, however famous he may be among the civilians. Ninja of mediocre ability were of no interest to him regardless of whether or not they shared his blood.

"Did I request your opinion on the matter?" Hiashi's tone was one of emotionless but tinged slightly with lethal warning- a warning for Naruto to shut his mouth while he had a chance and remove himself from the premises before he had to do it for him with the help of multiple garbage bags and sharp utensils. But, Naruto being Naruto decided to completely ignore his warning if he had even caught it in the first place and ploughed on.

"Just who the hell do you think you are? Huh? How can you say all that crap about Hinata-chan when you don't know a thing about her? As soon as you thought she was a worthless case you threw her away like an old toy and abandoned her for Hanabi. How do you _think _she would feel about that? Fucking amazing and ready to take on the world blindfolded?"

Hiashi glared particularly hard at Naruto for using such coarse language. Hinata sucked in a deep breath knowing full well what the consequences of Naruto's rashness would entail.

Naruto obviously didn't give two fucks.

"Sure Hinata's shy and quiet but that gives you no right to write her off as a failure. She's a strong person with a beautiful soul and I won't let you talk shit about her just because you probably hate the fact she looks so much like her kaa-san."

Hiashi's eyes darkened ominously to the point where both Naruto and Hinata could easily view the killing intent embedded within. This was enough to make Naruto halt his words for a moment and watch the man before him silently, observing. When Hinata saw Naruto's mouth begin to open she cut in without a second thought- wanting to spare both their lives if possible by preventing him from sending her father into a deeper sense of rage, if such a thing could be accomplished.

"Naruto, don't sa-"

"You wish to know why I despise this girl?"

Before Naruto could utter anything in response Hiashi turned towards Hinata with a blank face. Without any warning prior to the act Hiashi's arm swung forward and backhanded her across the right cheek with such a force that her head snapped to the side and she lost her balance, falling to the ground in an unceremonious heap. The world before her eyes was blurry with unshed tears and her cheek stung like something fierce. She was certain a pool of blood was blooming under her fair, pale skin, causing a large red mark in the shape of Hiashi's hand to protrude from the side of her face as it started to swell up.

Naruto stood rooted to the spot, momentarily stunned. Hiashi took advantage of the opportunity to speak and faced Naruto.

"She is equivalent to the dirt taking residence underneath my ninja sandals. Her mother was the same way- weak, gentle, forgiving. Such traits do not make for an appropriate ninja." Hiashi scowled at the thought. "We were forced into an arranged marriage by the clan elders who at the time were seeking a future heir to take over the main house in the event of my death. Hayashi was not a member of the Hyuga clan- her father was an ordinary civilian who had fallen into a mutual love affair with an unknown woman and hence committed the shameful act of becoming pregnant with a bastard child." As he said this, Hiashi glared down at Hinata's fallen form, as though blaming her for everything that happened with her ancestors. "The reasoning behind the marriage arrangements remains unknown to me." The blonde was by her side, helping her sit up and brushing tender fingers over the site of redness and pain on her face as she blushed red and making the handprint on her face nearly indistinguishable. "As always is the case with a kekkei genkai, the dominant gene is passed through from the beholder- in this case, I- to the child so that the ability may be passed down to the next generation to come."

Naruto shook his head. Upon closer inspection Hiashi came to the realization the boy before him was shaking with rage. His keen ninja senses picked up on a filthy aura which surrounded the teenager. It was pulsating, pushing, and swirling around like it was trying to find a way to break free of restraints. He could only assume that someone had placed a seal on the boy to keep the demon locked away deep inside and prevent it from taking over its host's body and causing a rampage over Konoha like it had so many years ago. When the teen met his eyes Hiashi was only slightly surprised- although it didn't show- to see his eyes were tinted red, the pupils turning to a slit instead of maintaining their previous rounded shape like a human eye.

"Lay another hand on Hinata-chan and I'll rip it off."

Hiashi coked an eyebrow as elegantly as could be pulled off without appearing strange. The voice of the boy in front of him had changed drastically, having taken on a lower and more feral noise in comparison to his previous tones in which he usually spoke.

"Such words hold no meaning if you do not plan to move forward with initial intention."

Naruto growled- a low, guttural, animalistic noise. "I'll show _you_ intention!"

He lunged forward at Hiashi, clawed fingers aiming for his neck. Before he could get very far, however, Hinata imitated Naruto's actions and grabbed on to the back of his orange sweatshirt with surprising force. She pulled back with all the strength she could muster and Naruto came falling backwards, landing hard partially on Hinata's legs while the rest of him was strewn in an awkward position on the bamboo floor beneath them. He struggled to get up again and make another attempt on Hiashi's life, squirming around in vain with his clothing still in Hinata's grasp.

Naruto growled again, this time in irritation. "Hinata-chan, _let me go._ This bastard deserved what I have coming for him, so let me do my job and protect you!"

Hinata sighed inaudibly from her uncomfortable position under Naruto's writhing body. In gentle tones she told him, "Naruto...do not worry yourself over this. Please stay out of this; it is something between Father, myself and Hanabi only. Your interference is only hindering the inevitable."

Naruto's movements didn't stop- if anything they grew more frantic. He managed to pull a hand from her strong grip and used it in a fruitless attempt to grab Hiashi by the leg and pull him down to the floor. Hinata sighed again in frustration and yanked him backwards hard enough to make his back connect with the floor. She stood over him and, glaring in an unusually intimidating manner made worse by her kekkei genkai, began to chew him out for his actions. Hinata was a gentle soul but there was only so much insolence she could take at a particularly stressful time like this.

"_Naruto! Enough! _Do you not see all the extra trouble you are causing me right now? I know you're only trying to help me but this is not the way to go about it! Killing my father will not only solve nothing, it will get you in jail and force you to stand trial with the Hokage and the rest of the village. All your friends and loved ones will not know what to think of you anymore and most of the village will go right back to making you out to be a demon instead of a Leaf shinobi. Is that really what you want?"

It seemed what Hinata just said finally made its way through Naruto's head when he quit his actions and stared up at her. His normally cheerful baby blue eyes were now expressing such a deep sorrow that pierced Hinata's heart and made her immediately regret speaking to him quite so harshly. She could feel her entire body soften towards him and his current disposition. She knelt down beside him and took his right hand carefully, stroking the top of it lightly with her thumb in a comforting and consoling manner.

"I...I am sorry for my harshness; it was uncalled for. But I meant it when I said there is nothing that can be done here. You just have to let these things take their course."

He shook his head and studied her visage defiantly. "But why would you want to let something take its course when you can carve the path itself? It just doesn't make sense to me."

"Naruto..." Hinata wanted to tell him that things would be different, that he would be able to understand better, if he was born into a clan like her own. The Uzumaki family was a clan in itself but since the death of both of Naruto's parents he was the sole member left this placed him in a situation similar to that of Sasuke and Itachi- only the circumstances between the two families differed greatly. Hinata knew that telling this to Naruto would only wound his soft heart deeply and that was the last thing she ever wanted to do. His family was an especially touchy subject to her dear friend, something she respected immensely. Because of her typically gentle nature she refrained from voicing any of her thoughts out loud and instead watched him closely. Naruto was still studying her closely, a small dent appearing in between his eyebrows due to intense concentration and his full lips were twisted into a slight frown, a sure sign that his pondering was getting him nowhere close to any plausible conclusion he had hoped to eventually draw. She reached out with a sure hand and pressed a thumb lightly to the creased skin between his blonde eyebrows, massaging lightly until the skin under her digit smoothed out to its prior form. Naruto's eyes took on a most peculiar light as she continued her ministrations almost absentmindedly. A few seconds later she stopped but not before noticing Hiashi shifting most uncomfortably in her peripheral vision. She smiled lightly at him in a way that painstakingly reminded Naruto of the way a mother would lovingly watch over her children; the way he was certain his mother had once watched over his tiny infant self so many years ago while he was bundled up tight in a warm fluffy blanket. "Naruto, I appreciate your concern more than you will ever come to know. You have helped me through countless dark times in my life when I felt like the world was crashing down around me. You're one of the only people I know I can rely on no matter what to help me...but this time I want to help myself."

Hiashi uttered an inaudible comment under his breath from behind her. "These ridiculous sentiments are completely uncalled for."

Naruto ignored Hiashi completely as his eyes remained glued to the face of the girl before him- her immaculate and pale skin marred only by the red handprint that had taken up residence on her cheek. He knew better than anyone else the strength Hinata was capable of harnessing and executing both on the battle field and in everyday situations, whether it be with family, friends or foes. She had grown so much more than he ever initially thought she would and for that fact alone he was so, so proud of her. It was then he came to the ultimate conclusion that it was time for him to stand back as a friend and watch her make her own way; even though he would always be one step behind her in case she needed help in any way. He was never one to give up on his friends and he wasn't about to pull back on his morals now because Hinata's father wasn't exactly the role model of the year. "Okay, Hinata. But I'll always be around for you, believe it!"

"I always have." Hinata pulled Naruto to her and hugged him tightly in a silent display of gratitude before releasing his form and turning to face her father.

"I am well aware of the fact I failed you as both your daughter and a member of our clan as a small child. You made that sentiment perfectly clear the moment you began ignoring me and pulled Hanabi under your wing."

Hanabi inclined his head regally; strangely satisfied his daughter had correctly estimated the purpose of his actions. "I am glad you finally understand the reasons behind the scene. However jealousy will get you nowhere."

Hinata couldn't take her father's gall any longer. Now that Hanabi had brought all their problems to the surface and confessed her own feelings, her own were suddenly spiralling out of control and there was no way she would maintain a grip on them. As a matter of fact at this point in time Hinata wasn't so sure she wanted to even try keeping her feelings in check; everything had fallen apart and she doubted very much that anything could possibly get worse.

In a very uncharacteristic moment Hinata snorted. "Jealous? You think I'm _jealous?_ What is there to be jealous of? The fact you would so willingly cast away and then beat your own flesh and blood without a second thought like the heartless bastard you seem to have become? Hanabi was right about everything, you ripped us apart to keep me from dragging her down and keep her focused on nothing but your relentless training regimes! You single-handedly tore this family and this clan to shreds and now all you have to show for your hard work is a mass of Hyuga who want nothing more than to see you pulled from your seat as head of the clan!"

The next thing Hinata felt was that of her father's iron tight grip over her upper arm. They could both hear Naruto growling out warnings to Hiashi but neither of them paid him any heed, being too caught up in the moment to fully acknowledge anything else. Hiashi was glaring icy daggers at her, his Byakugan activated by adrenaline like her own.

"How dare you speak back to me, you insolent wench! My place within the clan is both deserved and much needed for proper functioning! You have no rights whatsoever to call me out on such ludicrous terms!

Hinata tried to rip her arm free of her father's grip without any success. Blinded by her constantly intensifying rage she attacked a pressure point in the wrist of Hiashi's most unsuspecting but offending hand with a quick shot of her Juken, clamping her hand over the wrist afterwards so Hiashi could not pull his arm back. His eyes widened partially before narrowing lethally in mounting anger, something Hinata decided to ignore for the time being.

"No rights? I have _every right _to speak my mind on this matter. You screwed both your daughters over for life. You must have treated kaa-san like she was worth nothing, only using her as a broodmare. You never wanted daughters; you only ever wanted a strong and handsome son who would one day take over the clan and do you proud. You behave horrendously towards every single member of the branch family as though they are below you. Speaking of which, Hizashi-san died in your place so you could keep running the clan and train your daughters to become proficient ninjas and Hyuga heirs- yet another thing you failed miserably. All you ever managed to do in your life is make the lives of others miserable and unbearable and I never wanted things to come to this but I am almost ashamed to have you as a father."

Everything grew eerily silent at Hinata's last words and the tension floating about in the air could have easily been severed with a kunai. Hiashi was staring at his daughter with an indecipherable expression drawn over his face. He did not say anything for many minutes but eventually his grip on Hinata's arm loosened and he let his arm drop back to his side. He eyes her for a few seconds more before turning away.

"Leave the premises immediately."

Hinata blinked, slightly shocked and made speechless by her father's words. "Nani?" she asked hesitantly. Hiashi glanced back at his daughter and repeated his words with more volume and force than before.

"I _said_-" Hiashi glared for emphasis- "Leave the premises of this compound immediately; both of you."

She watched as Hiashi turned his back towards her and Naruto and began walking away, most likely to his study. She teleported in front of him with an angry burst of chakra and forced a palm into the center of Hiashi's chest and forcing him to halt his movements. She glared up at him with no reservations, something she had never done before- Hiashi silently noted it seemed his eldest daughter was finally emerging from her gripping shell of shyness and fear.

"Just what do you mean by all of this? Even if I am no longer the heir to this clan I am still the daughter of the heir and as such will not be allowed to defect from this property to ensure my safety as a head member. _You_ have no right to do any of this to _me_, especially not after all you have done to me and countless others in the past. I will not have it."

Hiashi cocked his head. "Your wishes mean nothing to me. I am head of the council and therefore my word is law when enforced by the votes of the clan elders."

Hinata's brow creased slightly. "What you mean to say is..."

He nodded curtly. "Plans have already been discussed with the council and the elders. You are to no longer set foot inside this compound. From here on out you are to be considered exiled."

Hinata gaped at her father in a most unattractive manner before promptly snapping her mouth shut and drawing shutters over her expression. "And has the Hokage approved this change of events?"

Hiashi smirked slightly at her. "You know as well as I do the Hokage holds no authority over the private council decisions of any clan within itself. Your hands are tied now and you have no choice but to leave immediately and consider yourself a self-accepted failure of the Hyuga name."

Hinata turned her head to the left a bit and saw Naruto standing in the same place he was before near the conservatory. She could tell he was trying not to listen in on their discussion and was instead intensely studying every butterfly which fluttered through his line of vision. Even without Hiashi watching her every move she still had a large and loving family in Naruto and the rest of their friends, teachers and senseis. She looked back at Hiashi and inclined her head gracefully.

"Very well then." Without a glance over her shoulder Hinata strode back to where Naruto stood and placed a hand on his shoulder. He paused for a second before facing her, his expression betraying all the concern and worry he was feeling for her. Hinata tilted her head in the direction of the compound entrance and started to walk with Naruto in tow.

"Hey Hinata-chan, where're we going?" Naruto looked bewildered as she tugged him down multiple hallways until they arrived at the front shoji screen to the compound she had lived in and called home her entire life.

"I am no longer to live here." Hinata glanced up at Naruto as she spoke, seeing his expression shift from confusion to anger to contemplation to what looked akin to contentment, something she decided not to question him about.

Naruto took her hand and pulled her into a brief hug. "Live with me then." He took a step back and smiled brightly at her. "You know you're always welcome to my apartment, Hinata-chan. We can party and watch movies and we're gonna have a great time!" he fist pumped the air in obvious excitement and Hinata couldn't help but to grin and laugh delicately. Naruto would never change.

"I don't want to intru..." Naruto clasped a hand over her mouth and sent her a fake stern glare.

"Oh no, you don't, Hinata-chan. I know you're hesitant and stuff about asking favours but you don't have to worry about any of that now. You're staying with me and that's final."

Hinata sighed from under Naruto's hand. Her ingrained polite side was urging her to decline his offer but Hinata knew from the bottom of her heart that there was nothing she could do to persuade Naruto to let her just book a hotel room for an indefinite period of time or bunk with Sakura or Tenten instead. He saw this as a golden opportunity to help a friend and he wanted to help her out as much as he could, something Hinata was infinitely grateful for. Naruto was as stubborn as they came. She rolled her eyes lightly and reached a hand up, peeling Naruto's hand from her face so she could speak.

"Alright, as long as you're certain this is something you want." Naruto only grinned widely and nodded his head vigorously in exuberant agreement. She smiled. "Arigatou, Naruto-kun."

He laughed loudly and patted Hinata a little roughly on the back, something he did quite often to her consternation. "You don't have to thank me, really! Like I told you a million times before, I'm here to help!"

Naruto reached out in front of them and slid open the shoji screen before them to reveal the bustling streets of Konoha. The sun was shining brightly, multiple vendors were out selling everything from ramen and dango to ninja tools and exotic clothing and flowers were in full bloom, a sure sign of summer. As Naruto and Hinata descended the steps leading up to the Hyuga compound Hinata could feel the ominous weight upon her shoulders becoming lighter and lighter with each and every step until it disappeared altogether.

From this moment on, Hinata's life would begin anew.


	5. Constant Craving

This chapter took a lot longer to finish than I hoped, I'm quite sorry about that D: I've been working quite a bit lately and going out with friends which didn't leave much time to write and I have a feeling things are going to stay along that particular path, meaning **updates will not be coming as swiftly as they used to. **I still plan to eventually complete this story, but like I said in previous chapters, it's going to take quite a while to write down everything I have in mind.

Now, read and enjoy :]

"_Maybe a great magnet pulls_

_All souls towards truth_

_Or maybe it is life itself_

_That feeds wisdom to its youth"_

_-'Constant Craving'- k.d. lang_

A slightly dilapidated, weathered-down apartment complex situated comfortably along one of Konoha's main streets sat in front of Hinata precisely two minutes and fourty-seven seconds later. Vines of multiple native specimens crawled and twirled up its brick sides, linking themselves to the plumbing pipes and a trellis which someone had thoughtfully placed to aid their growth. Due to the usually warm and slightly humid temperatures which often plagued Konoha in its summer months the plant mass before her was exploding with dozens of differently coloured flowers and blossoms, each and every one of them breathtaking in their own way. Although Hinata held a very certain fascination with butterflies her love of plant life trailed not very far behind in her book of hobbies and life appreciations. Gardening was an interest Hinata had long since wanted to take up; however her father had banned the idea from her mind, telling her such pastimes were weak and did not reap any benefits in relation to the shinobi world. Hinata's lips twisted in a bittersweet way. Now that her father had kicked her out of the Hyuga compound she could carry on with her gardening without worrying about him and what he would say or think of her.

Naruto tugged her arm and led her up to the lobby door and opened it, exposing a small but homely commons room decorated with picture frames, paintings and various antique items. A kindly looking woman of about fifty sat at the back of the room behind a large wood desk which was covered with various objects and overflowing with paperwork. Despite this she looked up when Naruto and Hinata entered and waved, smiling in a way that made Hinata feel right at home. Obviously Naruto felt the same way, judging by the way he grinned happily.

"Good morning, Naruto-san. It's not too often I see you heading up to your apartment using the stairs or elevator."

Hinata raised an eyebrow imperceptibly and glanced over sideways at her blonde friend who laughed sheepishly and reached up to scratch at the back of his head awkwardly.

"Aha, well, you see, it's really much faster the other way..."

The old woman sighed good naturedly before turning back to her work. "Even if you are a ninja, Naruto, accidents still happen. Jumping to and from such great heights doesn't do anything good for my heart, especially seeing as you live on the top floor."

Naruto made a face at the thought of hurting himself doing something as simple as using chakra to leap up to his apartment window- it really was so much faster than walking all the way into the lobby, then all the way up the stairs, then _all the way down the hall_ just to get to his door. Even using the elevator was slower and he didn't like it- a tightly enclosed steel box that made his stomach want to push out all the ramen it contained; something that almost never happened. "Gomen, Chichi-san, but there's no reason to worry. After all, I'm gonna be Hokage! If you can't have faith in me, then you can't have faith in anyone!" he thumped a thumb into the middle of his chest as he spoke, his face glowing with self-assured pride. Hinata had no doubts in her mind that one day in the future Naruto would make the finest Hokage yet.

Hinata tugged lightly on the neon orange sleeve of Naruto's signature jumpsuit. "Come on, Naruto-kun." A sudden brush of something cool and somewhat familiar teased her ninja senses before quickly pulling back and disappearing altogether. She glanced up at him feeling slightly worried. "There are people in your apartment- two chakra signatures are all I can detect."

The ninja beside her paused ever so briefly before grinning widely again and bouncing around like a small enthused child. "Oh, hey, it's Sakura-chan and Sasuke-teme! Come on Hinata, let's go and tell them the awesome news!"

Before Hinata could form a reaction Naruto was already pulling her towards the elevator sitting quietly at the opposite end of the room. The doors _whooshed_ open and at once he stepped in, pulling her along with him until they were both safely tucked inside. A few seconds later Hinata felt the familiar sensations of her stomach dropping as they moved to the floor on which Naruto's apartment resided.

Twenty-seven and a half steps down a freshly cleaned hallway, one quarter turn to the left- and Hinata was staring down Naruto's door.

He pushed it open, revealing a sparsely furnished apartment equipped with an old television, a radio situated in a far corner atop an antique wooden table, and various items laying atop a beat up coffee table including a magazine, multiple senbon, a half empty can of toothpicks and a dirty plate holding the remains of last night's meal of sushi and fried rice. Adorning the walls were a couple of photographs of team seven and one of his parents standing together, his mother cradling a tiny infant swathed in the fluffiest blanket Hinata had ever seen in her entire life.

As she took one step further into Naruto's living space she viewed a very familiar and very worn black couch- she had sat on it thousands of times in all the times she had visited Naruto in the past, and continued to do so- only now she would inhabit this space, not just temporarily occupy it. It belatedly came to her attention that there were bodies atop the couch- two to be exact- the forms of Sakura and Sasuke. The air in the apartment felt cool and electrified with Sasuke's presence, similar to the feelings she imagined his _Chidori_ would induce within its chosen victims.

The Uchiha himself appeared to be as silent and remote as ever- sitting still, his shoulders stiff with an intangible sort of tension. Raven hair ejected forth from the back of his scalp in a barrage of inky spikes which protruded outwards a good few inches- Hinata silently wondered if he'd ever poked someone in the eye in the process of turning his head; somehow she found herself to be most unsurprised if such a thing had ever happened in the past. He was clad in his clan's traditional black ninja wear; a pitch black shirt with a high collar and t-shirt sleeves embroidered with the Uchiha crest where she knew resided comfortably and pridefully in the dip between his shoulder blades. Underneath his arms were wrapped with plain white bandages. What parts of it she could see were covered in a criss-cross pattern of black ninja tapes designed to strengthen the joints of his arms during battle. He wore the customary navy black pants of ninja who had achieved the rank of jounin. His ever-present katana was strapped securely to his right hip and both kunai and senbon pouches were attached to his waist via a black belt. A black shuriken pouch lay strapped atop a small wrapped portion of Sasuke's right leg.

His face and shadowed dark eyes were as expressionless and blasé as ever.

The female situated beside him on the very same couch was a complete turnaround from her dark counterpart. Haruno Sakura had grown in many ways over the years since they were a pack of genin, both physically and in talent. She was the famed medical apprentice of the Hokage, so skilled she was due to surpass her mentor at any given time in the near future. Her bright pastel pink locks fell to just above shoulder length, swaying slightly from the breeze caused by an open window a few feet away. She was clothed in a sleeveless red shirt embroidered with the Haruno family symbol in the middle of her back and knee-length form fitting black shorts which she wore underneath a mid-thigh length pink medic skirt which was an almost perfect match with her hair. Weapons pouches were arranged on her person in a way identical to Sasuke's, and strapped across her back was a tanto which Hinata knew the pinkette had become profoundly skilled at wielding in addition to her chakra enhanced limbs and legendary temper- something no one was certain if she adopted from the Hokage due to years of tutelage and exposure or if it was a hereditary trait. Her bright emerald green eyes caught sight of Hinata almost immediately and she beamed cheerfully, lifting a hand in greeting.

"Hey, Hinata! What brings you here?"

Hinata smiled in her gentle way and lifted a palm in greeting. She and Sakura had always been friends, even back in the Academy when she was so devotedly fascinated with Sasuke and could never stop chattering about him. However when she opened her mouth to speak, she hesitated and sent Naruto an inconspicuous glance before continuing along.

"Well, Naruto-kun was-"

Naruto threw an arm around Hinata's shoulders and let loose a dazzling grin that could have been described as blinding in its intensity. She sucked in a breath and held it, having a certain not-so-good feeling she knew where this was headed.

"Hinata-chan's gonna be bunking here from now on!"

Sakura paused and stared at Naruto, surprise seeping into her features and becoming more pronounced as the moments passed. Even Sasuke reacted, if sounds were anything to go by.

"...Hn."

He shifted his position slightly and peeled his glare off the floor, only to stick it to Naruto instead- his expressionless eyes taking on a distantly calculating appeal.

The pinkette glanced at her black clad team mate before looking over at Naruto again.

"Naruto? How is this..." she stole a quick glance at Hinata before returning her gaze to Naruto's face. "What happened?"

Naruto shrugged and continued on. "Her dad kicked her out."

Hinata felt the beginnings of a mortified blush creep up her neck and spread over her face as Naruto spoke, feeling embarrassed over the way he worded her fate. Sakura seemed to have noticed and chastised her blonde team mate for his insensitivity.

"_Naruto!_" Sakura sent an incredulous stare his way like she couldn't believe her ears- but she should have seen it coming after all; she _had _been team mates with Naruto since they were twelve and therefore one of the few lucky souls most exposed to his behaviour. She observed Hinata, feeling sorry for the young heiress to be so blatantly placed in the spotlight in such an undignified manner.

Hinata tried to ignore the situation before her and stared at the floor. She started when a hand lightly touched her arm and she glanced up to meet Sakura's eyes. They were full of sympathy as her friend reached over and lightly touched her cheek in the very same place where her father had struck her with the back of his hand.

"Hinata... what happened?" her words were soft and concerned, like any friend's would be if in her position. Hinata averted her eyes feeling momentarily shamed even though none of what happened earlier that morning was her fault.

"M-my father struck me."

Sakura's emerald eyes grew large; startled. Naruto's newly clenched fists held stiffly by his side didn't escape her notice. She could also feel the heavy weight of Sasuke's intense stare upon her person. The sudden blanketing of suppressed anger and grimness which settled over the apartment and all its occupants came only as a slight surprise to Hinata, seeing as how the majority of it was most likely emanating from the blonde of the group.

"...Nani?"

Hinata sighed under her breath and glanced, almost shyly, at the three ninjas surrounding her before she spoke to Sakura under her breath and hoping somehow that Naruto and especially Sasuke wouldn't hear of her past tribulations. She couldn't put her finger on exactly why she would rather Sasuke not know, but she learned long ago to trust her intuition, much like Sakura.

"Father deems me unworthy of living under the roof of the Hyuga compound. Ever since I was small I've never served as a proper ninja in his eyes. Recently he spoke with the clan elders and formed a council meeting in which they decided to kick me out the compound for good and live as a stray Hyuga, so I won't taint their name by association but only my own, by my own failures."

She peered at the two male ninjas in the room and silently gauged their response, had they heard what she just said. It was unlikely but with two advanced jounin both within twenty feet she wouldn't put it past their capabilities.

Naruto was squinting at the opposite wall, his face scrunched up in a very Naruto-esque manner; indicating he was thinking very hard about what he just heard. Hinata had a strong feeling he didn't have the faintest idea why she had ended up being kicked out of her compound- for that matter, neither did she.

Sasuke stared blankly.

Should she have really expected anything different? She guessed not.

Hinata broke out of her short reverie when she felt a cool, tingling sensation spread out over the injured side of her face- the effects of Sakura's healing chakra. Slowly the tenderness and swelling dissipated until a few minutes later it was no longer there, her skin once again as pale and flawless as it had always been. She reached up and hesitantly prodded the affected area before bowing her head lightly in thanks.

"Arigatou, Sakura. It feels much better now."

Despite the worry in her friend's eyes the pinkette smiled fondly, an expression Hinata knew she took on quite often when she was successful in helping patients out of their misery with the aid of her ninjutsu on her many long shifts working her fingers to the bone in the Konoha General Hospital. Sakura was a person who took to feeling wanted and needed and with her past Hinata could easily understand how following the path of a medic could become greatly beneficial to curing her self-consciousness and feeling of unworthiness- she grew up with the same issues and still had to face them from time to time. Even though Hinata's chakra control wasn't as good as Sakura's she had learned how to execute some of the more difficult jutsu of her clan which required substantial control. Now that the thought flitted across her mind she supposed that, maybe, with the proper practice and training that she would now be undergoing, perhaps she would be able to hone it to a skill she could use alongside her kekkei genkai.

"It's no problem at all, Hinata. Just as long as you're feeling better now, that's all that matters." The pinkette before her smiled brightly and clasped her hands together in front, her eyes closed in happiness. Hinata couldn't help but to hope her friend found her true happiness in one way or another in the future- even with her legendary temper and occasional nagging tendencies, she was a good person and deserved a happy life. She smiled herself before glancing around Naruto's small apartment once more.

"Ne, Sakura- why are you and Sasuke-san here? I wasn't expecting it."

Sakura laughed lightly; sheepishly.

"Oh, right, about that." She then glanced over at Naruto. "I heard something interesting from Tsunade-sama during my shift this morning."

Naruto was nonplussed. "Nani? You work in a hospital. What would be so interesting about _that_?"

Her pink haired friend's face grew red with barely restrained anger at his words.

"For your information, _Naruto, _I happen to spend hours and hours every day saving lives of shinobi and civilians alike. Without people working in the hospital our population would have dwindled drastically. You, Sasuke, Kakashi, even Hinata would be dead. Everyone else you know and care about would more than likely have died as well. We live as shinobi; we can never know how long we will survive."

She huffed indignantly as Naruto quieted for a moment before speaking again, his voice uncharacteristically soft and a bit defensive.

"Ne Sakura-chan, relax, I wasn't being serious... you should know that by now."

Hinata idly noted the level of contentedness in the chakra surrounding her had plummeted drastically, replaced by a cold, feral emotion which radiated something sinister that she could only describe as hate. Without giving it much thought Hinata automatically turned to see Sasuke sitting stiffly on the couch still, his hands clenched into fists which she was sure held the intense desire to destroy.

Sakura must have noticed as well, for but a moment later she heard the pinkette utter apologies after thinking over what she just said and the implications it made on her team-mates.

"I... gomen ne, Sasuke-kun, Naruto-kun. I didn't think before I opened my mouth... I guess I really have to work on that, don't I?"

A deep rumble sounded throughout Naruto's apartment, carrying a single word with harsh intent.

"Obviously." Sasuke didn't look at any of them but a scowl had settled itself comfortably along the lines of his mouth. Hinata had a feeling he and Sakura had conversations like this, if they could even be called conversations, quite often. She couldn't quite see how Sakura could find it within herself to love someone as cold as Sasuke, but the pinkette and raven haired teenagers had been team-mates since they were twelve- so surely she knew much more about him than she herself did. Hinata knew the Uchiha Massacre that took place when he was a mere eight years old had scarring and traumatizing effects on him- if anyone, Sakura and Naruto were the only ones who knew how deep that went.

"Sasuke-kun..." Sakura sighed and continued on, sending Hinata a quick smile in the process. "Anyways... I was working the early morning shift healing a patient with an aggressive respiratory illness with Tsunade-sensei. After we were done she had a conference with Shizune- I was ordered to wait for her outside the door. I couldn't hear much of what they were saying, but-"

Naruto whirled in Sakura's direction and gave her his complete attention. "Baa-chan and Shizune only conference for top grade missions don't they?" before Sakura could answer; Naruto pumped a fist in the air, positively gleeful at the prospect of another mission. "Baa-chan's gonna send us on an S-ranked mission, dattebayo! This is awesome!"

"Baka!" Sakura smacked the blonde up the back of his head to shut him up. "No one knows yet for sure whether or not there even _is _a mission to be doled out. Even if there was, I highly doubt she would send a group of chuunin and the kyuubi jinchuuriki host; that's just asking for trouble."

Hinata decided now was as good a time as ever to speak up. "But Sakura-chan, how many missions have there been as of late that were coined as S-ranked? Recently the village has not been in particularly high demand for shinobi from other villages for missions."

Sakura's brow puckered slightly as she thought. "Well, there have been a few recently, but..." She paused as suddenly some of the colour in her cheeks drained, leaving her sheet white. "Kuso, I think I know what it was about."

"Sakura-chan, are you feeling alright? You're quite pale." Hinata led Sakura back to the couch on which Sasuke remained and sat her down before taking a seat on the armrest gracefully. "What did you conclude?"

The pinkette took a deep breath and released it through her nose before continuing. "There _have _been multiple S-ranked missions lately, but...they have all been affiliated with the Akatsuki." She chanced a quick glance over at Sasuke from the corner of her eye and saw he had tensed up even more than earlier- a clear sign he was distressed.

"Sasuke-kun." Sakura's voice held an almost imperceptible tone of warning, which the other teen caught. He scowled even deeper at her before continuing his glaring contest with the floor. Naruto picked up on the silence.

"So... what about the Akatsuki is this mission directed towards?"

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know, Naruto, I really don't."

"Sakura, tell Tsunade to send me on that mission." Hinata looked up, surprised, to see Sasuke's onyx orbs staring into her friend's emerald ones. She was evidently startled as well, because she started stuttering, unsure of what to say.

"But...Sasuke-kun, I...I really don't think-"

"You're right. You _don't_ think. You don't think about what a mission with the Akatsuki means to me. You don't think about the Uchiha massacre and what it did to me. You don't think about Itachi and what _he_ did to me. I've been living my entire life waiting for a chance to avenge my clan and get revenge for myself. On this mission, whether you help me or not, I _will_ be going." He then stood up and quickly exited Naruto's apartment, but the lingering effect of his chilling chakra remained. Everyone sat in silence for a few minutes thinking over what jut happened before Naruto broke it.

"He really has to stop being such a girl. And such a _bitch_."

Sakura gaped at him for a moment. She made a swift recovery, promptly punching him in the arm- with chakra.

"Owwwwwwww! Sakura-chan, what the hell was _that_ for? I didn't even _do_ anything!"

She ignored him, deciding to instead start a lecture. "He has his reasons for being like that, you know. If you had a brother or sister who killed your parents, wouldn't you feel the same way?"

He shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know, my family died before I could get to know them." He started at a framed picture on the opposite wall- the one of an infant Naruto being held by his loving mother and guarded closely by his father, Minato. "It would have been really nice to meet them, though. Like, in person. I've heard stories and I hear they were both really good people, even though Kaa-san had a temper just as bad as yours, Sakura-chan." He glanced at the pinkette. "You and Sasuke are both lucky- you both knew your families- for a while anyways- and that's a lot more than I could ever hope to have with mine. Your mom is still alive too, so I guess you're the luckiest of us all. Even Kakashi-sensei is kinda screwed when it comes to family, although he has us and Sasuke, and I think we make him really happy, even though I bet he'd never admit it. He's always too busy burying his nose in those porn books of his. Darn Jiraiya-sensei for writing them all the time..." he swallowed and blinked hard a few times before opting to look out a window which overlooked the east side of Konoha. "He was a part of my family too, you know? He taught me a lot; I'm not going to find someone like him ever again, I don't think."

"I...I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. It was rude and selfish of me to say something so brash."

The blonde gave the pinkette beside him one of his famous smiles. "No worries, Sakura-chan. You're always forgiven."

"I don't deserve it." Sakura's head was bowed down in apparent shame. Naruto just placed a hand on her head and ruffled it like she had seen Kakashi-sensei do a few times back when they were genin.

"Oh, shut up Sakura-chan. You know I love you."

She smiled. "Yeah, yeah, I know, Naruto-kun. I know."

Hinata watched the scene playing out before her eyes with a feeling of content. She guessed what Naruto told her earlier was right- he now just saw his female team-mate as a close friend. How his team-mate felt for Sasuke on the other hand, was an entirely different matter. And with the added news of a mission to do with the Akatsuki, Hinata could only say she had a very bad feeling on what was about to unfold in all of their futures- futures which were tied together with bonds, friends and one teenager's thirst for revenge.

Thank you for reading, please review!


	6. Moment of Truth

So I have today off work and wanted to write another chapter asap, so here you go! ^-^

Please review/comment :D

"_And here we are, on the best day of our lives  
And it's a go, lets make it last, so cheers you  
All to that, 'cause this moment's never comin' back"_

_-'Moment of Truth'- FM Static_

"Spread your legs farther apart...yes, like that. Very good."

Hinata shifted her stance to the correct form and raised her hands out in front of her in a defensive Juken position and prepared herself for another spar with her younger sister.

Over the past few weeks Hanabi had snuck out of her former compound so she could train Hinata defensively and teach her sister more jutsu she had missed out on learning when she failed under their father's training regimes when she was young. Her older sister was actually quite accomplished for a Hyuga- she performed katas with ease, harbouring only a few minor mistakes and her Byakugan could see for at least ten kilometres- something that shocked Hanabi greatly, considering the circumstances. Her own Byakugan could only see for five. She was almost on par with their father, who could see for eighteen and a half.

"Ne, Hinata-chan, you're much better at this than you claim. I had no idea your Byakugan was nearly so developed."

Hinata blushed slightly under her sister's praise and ducked her head, suddenly feeling shy. "Forming my Byakugan was the only thing I could manage to train myself in without father knowing. If he found out I would be ridiculed and blown off as a failure furthermore, something I didn't wish to get involved in again."

Hanabi observed her sister before nodding. "Well, all your training certainly paid off." Hinata couldn't help but notice her sister's voice was tinged with approval- something noteworthy when coming from the prodigy of the Hyuga clan. "Now, there is a jutsu I want to show you; I believe with your demonstrated chakra control and unseen knowledge of Juken you will be able to successfully execute the technique. You've heard of the _Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists_, right?

Hinata blinked in slight surprise and nodded. She had indeed heard of this technique and had seen it in action- but only by her father, an excellent shinobi of prodigious status like her sister. She had heard it was a very difficult jutsu to learn, but she was prepared to learn it herself in order to further her kunoichi career.

"Hai, I have."

Hanabi nodded shortly. "Alright. Good." She took a deep breath before continuing. "Now. The point of this jutsu is to pull a lion shaped form of chakra to both of your fists. This technique harbours intense physical power and is strong enough to destroy even the strongest of materials, and should not be used lightly. It is also effective in stunning your opponent for a moment or two so a death blow may be dealt successfully and without any problems." She sighed lightly before looking Hinata directly in the eye. "Are you ready to begin?"

The older Hyuga nodded her head in consent.

"Okay. This technique requires a large amount of an individual's chakra to execute, but with your chakra control I'm guessing once you have it mastered you will only need about half of your chakra, if not less depending on how long it will be in use. But, enough of that; let's get started already."

Hinata watched as Hanabi stood focused for a moment- she executed the hand seals and said "_Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!_" Merely seconds later she watched in awe as twin lion heads of chakra quickly protruded from her sister's slender fists, glowing an ethereal blue and casting a light glow on her face.

"Start by pulling about a quarter of your chakra to your fists and pushing it forward to cover the entire area. If done correctly, the lion heads will appear. Usually more chakra is needed for a successful attack, but seeing as how we are merely practicing, force is not needed. However, the more chakra you place into the technique, the more likely it will be to succeed. Keep that in mind."

Hinata nodded in understanding and focused on her task at hand, literally. She copied the hand seals Hanabi had made in the same order, and said "_Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!_" Summoning a sizeable yet expendable portion of her chakra, she directed it towards both of her fists and condensed it before pushing it out to cover both of her fists, concentrating hard on keeping the flow even and smooth. Lavender chakra began creeping over her pale fists and had only just begun to form the shape of twin lions when her chakra flickered, sputtered and then finally disappeared.

Hinata tried to tamp down her feelings of disappointment while Hanabi stared, impressed.

"That was excellent for a first try. It took me a full day of practice before I could properly form the lion heads, and you have already passed the halfway point."

Hinata tried not to look upset at her failure. "I lost control of my chakra for a second; that was all."

"Then try it again." At Hinata's pause of hesitation Hanabi fixed her sister with a stern look. "Hinata, you have to remember that all things worth learning take time, patience and energy. Without any one of these things you will never excel in life or your career as a kunoichi. I know it gets hard and trying at times and you feel like giving up, but you just have to put on a brave face and keep trying. Besides, you've only had one go at it so far. Just give it another shot."

And so she did.

Focusing clearly, Hinata again formed each of the six hand seals cleanly and shouted "_Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists!_" she gathered a large amount of chakra and sent it through the proper chakra pathways until it arrived at both of her fists. Determined to make the technique work this time around, she carefully moulded her chakra in both fists to pull out and cover the appendages entirely with a thick covering of lavender chakra. Keeping focused on maintaining her chakra level flow smooth she watched with giddy satisfaction when twin lion heads appeared and held strong.

Hinata wanted to test her new jutsu. She punched the air in front of her experimentally and felt a strange but not unappreciated surge of power fill her body and senses. She looked around for something to test it on and spied a half-dead tree on the edge of the perimeter of the training ground in which she and Hanabi decided to train for the day. Running forward with astonishing speed she pulled back her right fist and let it crash forth into the tree.

It snapped with an ear-splitting shriek and flew backwards about fifty meters before crashing to the ground. Splinters rained to the ground all around Hinata and she smiled enthusiastically at her success.

Turning around she saw Hanabi frozen in place, her face itself frozen in a pure look of shock and disbelief. She soon broke out of it however, and jumped up in the air and screamed, pumping a fist into the air in the process.

"Go Hinata! Kami, how did you _do_ that? It was freaking amazing! I'm seriously jealous of how fast you caught on to everything I've taught you. You even learned _Eight Trigrams: Palms Revolving Heaven, Gentle Fist_ and _Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Wall Palm Technique_ in under a day! If only you had trained like this for years earlier, you could have been one of the strongest ninjas Konoha has to offer."

Hinata blushed. "Hai, well... certain situations hindered my ability and desire to grow as a ninja. You got off well, but... at least I am training now, and with good reason too. You never know when an important mission may arise."

Hanabi nodded. "There's never any time to lose when it comes to that, you're right."

Hinata opened her mouth to speak, suddenly becoming shy and she began to fidget slightly. Hanabi noticed this, as expected, and called her out on it.

"Hinata... why are you fidgeting, is something wrong?"

she shook her head. "No, No, nothing is wrong... in fact, something good. I... I have been working on developing a new technique."

Hinata could easily tell that her younger sister's interest was immediately piqued.

"Oh, really? How do you even find time for more training between all of this practice?... well, nevermind about that. So, what's this technique you speak of?"

Hinata flushed and looked o the side. I... call it _Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-four Palms._"

Hanabi cocked her head. "It sounds quite interesting. What does it do?"

"I can pull a constant stream of chakra which flows from my palms and creates extremely thin and sharp chakra blades. I can then, with the help of my Byakugan, strike anything within my field of vision. The faster I am, the more precise the technique is. I can also control the size of the chakra strings coming from my palms and thus create arcing chakra beams which stretch over my entire attack range. It is somewhat a mix between _Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms_ and _Eight Trigrams: Palms Revolving Heaven_ and it can be used as both an offensive and defensive technique."

Hanabi simply gazed at her older sister with a bright expression of approval.

"That sounds like an exceptionally well planned out jutsu- it can attack opponents as well as keep them at bay, something that not many jutsu are capable of. But, Hinata, what made you create a jutsu of your own in the first place?"

Hinata smiled bashfully as she spoke. "I wanted to find a way to make Father realize my potential as a ninja by creating an ultimate defense jutsu designed to both protect the attacker and incapacitate the foe. I thought he would have been impressed with my work but when it comes to the clan he only cares about how to lead it and how to gain a stronger heiress to the clan, such as you. Speaking of which, now that I have been kicked out of the compound, you are, by default, the new heiress."

Hanabi scowled. "I am many things, but a willing heiress is not one of them. When the time comes for Father to retire, I will not want to take up his position. My career as a kunoichi means much more to me than bossing around family members. The way Father treats the clan is horrid, but I do not know what can be done about it."

Hinata fidgeted awkwardly.

"Perhaps if you give yourself time, you may change your mind?"

She snorted in an undignified manner. "I highly doubt it, but we'll see."

When the sun started to set in the ever darkening evening sky around dinnertime Hanabi bid Hinata farewell. Hinata watched her sister stroll through town in the direction of her compound until she was out of sight before turning in the opposite direction to Naruto's apartment.

Naruto was in the process of opening the microwave to cook a cup of instant ramen when Hinata leaped up and landed on the kitchen windowsill with catlike grace. Screeching unbecomingly, he fumbled with his precious ramen cup but lost the battle when it fell to the floor, spreading its contents into a delicious puddle on the floor. Naruto whimpered and picked up the cup, glancing inside it hopefully. When he saw it was empty he wailed with heartfelt sorrow and dropped to his knees in front of the newly made mess.

"Hinata, why did you use the window? Chichi-san said we should use the elevator; just look at what you did. Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?"

While the blonde mourned the loss of him ramen, Hinata swiftly cleaned up the mess and threw out the empty cup before pulling out a small box of rice from one of many cupboards and some salmon from the fridge/freezer combination which sat snugly against the wall. She placed an iron pan atop a stove element and turned up the heat to half its maximum capacity, dripping some oil in it and listening to its insistent hiss as it heated up. Apparently over his loss, Naruto looked on with curiosity glinting in his bright blue eyes.

"What are you doing, Hinata-chan?"

She rolled her eyes as she turned back to the stove and started to place in it pieces of salmon which immediately began to sizzle. "What does it look like, Naruto-kun? I'm making us a proper meal. Kami only knows the last time you ate anything besides ramen from either Ichiraku's or those little Styrofoam cups."

"Kakashi-sensei brings me fruit baskets."

She looked at him knowingly over her shoulder. "Do you eat them?"

He opened his mouth to argue but promptly shut it again when he couldn't think up an excuse that would both save him and convince her of his eating habits. Hinata smirked lightly at her win and finished cooking their meal.

Twenty minutes later Naruto and Hinata were seated at the small kitchen table situated in the middle of his kitchen, eating and conversing amiably.

"Hanabi taught me another jutsu today."

Naruto choked on his tea and barely succeeded in not spewing it across the table, which would land it directly on Hinata.

"Nani? _Again_? What the hell is up with this? In the past month you've learned about as much jutsu as I did in over a year. You're like, a super-ninja or something. Kinda like Sasuke-teme's brother, I heard he was the best ninja in all of Konoha while he was around, hands down- but don't tell him I told you

that; he'd skin me alive and eat the pieces with Sakura-chan if he ever heard anything of it."

Hinata's brow furrowed. "You mean Uchiha Itachi? If what I heard of his abilities is true then I'm not even in the same league as him. As a matter of fact, he was a league all his own. Considering all he's done, he would _have_ to be a formidable ninja, there's no way I could ever be compared to him."

Naruto huffed. "Who _else_ can learn jutsu so quickly? Hmm?"

"I... I don't know. But that's beside the matter- I am nowhere nearly as skilled as Itachi. End of story."

Naruto waved his free hand at her dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Keep telling yourself that. But you can't hide from the truth."

She sighed. "As you say, Naruto-kun."

He wiped his mouth with the napkin placed by his now empty plate and leaned back in his chair contentedly. His chair was tipping backwards at a dangerous angle but he paid it no mind.

"You know, I still think it's stupid that Sasuke's so hell bent on hunting down his brother. I mean, I'd be really super pissed off if my brother killed the rest of my family, but... Sasuke's alive still. Doesn't that mean something?"

Hinata shrugged. "Maybe he was gone when the massacre took place?"

The blonde shook his head. "No, Sasuke was staying late practicing at the Academy, but he kinda walked in on it." Hinata paled at the thought of such a traumatizing experience while Naruto continued on. "He found Itachi just... standing over his parents' bodies. They talked about something, I don't know what, and then bam, Itachi left the village and hasn't been back since."

Hinata thought back to her clan and her father, the dark things he had done to the rest of them and the way he had kicked her out and deemed her to be his daughter no longer. As with any major clan with an unfit leader Hinata knew dirty work was an inevitable part of one's life. The Uchiha clan name was as well known as the Hyuga, if not more so- and with the apparent animosity between the Uchiha clan and Konoha that had been brewing since forever, perhaps something had happened that no one knew the truth behind.

She voiced her thoughts no Naruto, who considered it briefly before he shook his head and scrunched up his nose in an admittedly cute manner.

"I doubt anything like that happened. I mean, come _on,_ Hinata-chan. This is Konoha, our home. Everyone's super nice. Do you really believe something dark and twisted like that could happen? This place is like the epitome of sunshine and rainbows and happy people everywhere you look, I just _know_ nothing bad happened. Itachi just had a random itch that needed to be scratched, I guess."

_What a way to scratch an itch,_ Hinata thought numbly.

Still, she couldn't quite shake off the feeling that something didn't quite add up. Naruto did have a point, after all- Sasuke was alive and still in Konoha, which is more than she thought would have happened if she considered the massacre and the thought of the same fate befalling her own family name... but why kill an entire clan only to leave one child, namely his younger brother, alive? It just didn't make any sense.

She stood up and collected the accumulated dishes of their meal, and drained her remaining tea in the sink. She carefully washed said dishes and placed them in their assigned places before stopping and looking around.

"You know, Naruto-kun, you should really tidy up around here once in a while."

The ninja in question fixed her with a bewildered look. "Nande? Why would I do that?"

"Because," she drawled, motioning around the kitchen with a hand, "it's really messy in here. Needs to be cleaned up, don't you think?"

He shrugged.

"Meh, I'm used to it by now, after years of living like this it's not the first thing on my to-do list."

Hinata tilted her head slightly. "Then what is on your to-do list, Naruto-kun?"

He scratched at the back of his head sheepishly. "Eh... saving helpless kittens from trees, helping old ladies across the street... asking Kakashi-sensei for more fruit baskets?"

She sighed wholeheartedly. "Naruto-kun, you spend too much time with your sensei, you're turning out to be just like him."

He sent a glowing smile her way. "I'll take that as a compliment, Hinata-chan. Arigatou!"

"Ungh... you're welcome, Naruto-kun."

Hinata decided to take the initiative and started to clean up various rooms of Naruto's apartment, dusting, sweeping and even going so far as to clean the windows. Cleaning was another thing besides butterflies that tended to keep Hinata busy- cleaning gave her something to do while she contemplated and butterflies just took her mind off of the other aspects of her life which she'd rather forget for the time being. Considering Naruto was living alone, she was surprised it was orderly in the least but she suspected his female pink-haired team-mate spent some time of her own tidying up the place for him on occasion as well. In a couple of hours, his- their apartment was looking much better. Everything was in the proper place and looked clean.

Naruto, who retired to his room when Hinata had started cleaning, just entered into the kitchen and stopped in his tracks once he caught sight of his surroundings. He blinked in astonishment before cheering her on.

"Wow, Hinata-chan, this place looks way better than it used to! I guess this is what my house would have looked like if Kaa-san and Oto-san were still alive. I can actually find stuff now, this is great, dattebayo!"

"It's no problem, Naruto-kun." Hinata smiled, happy to see Naruto in good spirits. Even through everything that had happened to him, he still came out shining with positive energy. Hinata didn't know what she would do if something ever happened to Naruto.

She watched as he made a beeline for the counter corner and reached to open the lid to a designed clay pot. "Naruto...what are you doing?" he pulled off the lid, reached in, and pulled out a handful of homemade chocolate chip cookies. He picked out two from the pile and offered them to her with an outstretched arm.

"Cookies, you have to try some. Sakura-chan made me some with this really good recipe her mom gave her last week that she wanted to test, she always makes me the first batch of any recipe she gets so I can give her an opinion before she makes them for anything else. She's actually a really good cookie-maker. Cake-maker and brownie-maker too, for that matter."

Hinata nodded in agreement. Her pink-haired friend was indeed an amazing baker- last year when she was sick with the flu, Sakura had baked her a big tray of mint chocolate chip brownies with infused herbs to alleviate her discomfort and speed up her recuperation process. They were so good that she had asked for a copy of the recipe and now made it for herself or her friends when they weren't feeling very well- on occasion she and Sakura would team up together and bake together, particularly in the winter when sickness ran amok- and many people had expressed their thanks on multiple occasions.

Because of herb-infused baking and her chakra control, Sakura had taught her all about medicinal herbs, their effects, and had even taught her medical techniques such as chakra scanning, poison extraction and healing. Hinata found she was fairly good at medical work but her heart resided with her Juken, taijutsu and being on missions. However, Sakura's medical teachings had proved to be exceptionally useful on many occasions. People she had been placed in three-man cells with and both of her own team-mates, Kiba Inuzuka and particularly Shino Aburame, had been thankful of her abilities and the fact she had saved their lives on numerous occasions. The use of her Byakugan also proved to be infinitely helpful in charting chakra flow and detecting foreign objects within battlefield patients, something she prided herself with.

"Hai, I'll definitely try some, I never pass up opportunities on her baking if I can help it." She bit into one of the cookies he gave her and revelled in the amazing taste that took hold of her senses. "These are amazing, ill have to give Sakura-chan my approval in the morning."

Naruto nodded. "Me, too."

Hinata finished eating her cookies and yawned widely a short while later. "I'm off to bed now, Naruto-kun. You go to bed soon too, you never know what tomorrow will bring."

Her blonde friend pouted childishly. "Okaaaayyyyyyyy, Hinata-chan. In a few minutes."

"Alright, as long as you promise."

"I do."

"Okay." A pause. "And remember to brush your teeth."

"I will, Hinata-chan, don't worry."

"I'm just making sure."

"Hinata-chan... just please, go to bed already."

She smiled. "Trying to get rid of me already?"

He scrunched up his nose. "No... you just don't have to fret over me. I'm eighteen, a jounin! I've taken good care of myself in worse situations."

"Your home life was looking worse than any A-rank mission I've ever seen up until about an hour ago."

"Hinata-channnnnnn..."

"Just kidding. Alright, alright, I'm going. Oyasumi nasai."

"Right back at 'chya, Hinata-chan."

On her way to her newly appointed bedroom she stopped by the bathroom and brushed her teeth, using her light purple sparkly toothbrush. A minute later she spat in the sink and rinsed away her toothpaste-laced saliva and washed toothpaste out of her toothbrush as well. She then placed her toothbrush back in its holder and made her way to her bureau, and brushed out her long indigo hair until she could no longer feel any knots.

She fell backwards on her bed and sighed contentedly. This was the first time in a long while, perhaps ever, that she felt satisfied with herself, her abilities, and her surroundings.

Things were finally looking up.

Chapter 6, here you have it. :]

Please, review, id love to hear everyone's opinions of how this story is going and how it's written, etc.


	7. Telescope Eyes

Here's another chapter, I hope you like it!

Please review/comment :]

"_Oh, you humor me today_

_Calling me out to play with your telescope eyes"_

_-'Telescope Eyes- Eisley_

Insistent knocking early the next morning was what pulled Hinata from her deep sleep and dreamland. Knowing Naruto was impossible to pull out of bed this early in the morning without extreme force, she got out of bed herself and sluggishly made her way to the door. She turned the knob and pulled it open to reveal Sakura and Sasuke standing impatiently on the foyer.

Managing to cover up her momentary surprise at their presence at such an unusual hour, she pursed her lips slightly.

"Sakura? Sasuke? What's going on?"

Sakura said nothing and instead moved past Hinata and into the apartment, more than likely going to wake Naruto up. Sasuke barely looked at her when he spoke tersely, motioning slightly with a scroll which was held tightly in his right hand.

"Message from the Hokage."

Hinata's confusion cleared immediately and she glanced back for Naruto.

"I take it Naruto-kun is on the list?"

Sasuke nodded his head once, tersely. "You are too. Get dressed."

Hinata did as she was told and returned to the front of the apartment in under

two minutes. When she arrived Naruto was also present, yawning wisely and scratching the back of his head sleepily.

"Ne, why does she want us to come so early? I'm so tired."

"I told you to get more sleep, Naruto-kun," she said to him quietly as they left.

He grunted unhappily.

The group of four ninjas flash-stepped with chakra to the Hokage tower which resided in the very center of the village. Hinata mentally noted the dark and cloudy weather- it would likely rain in a few hours. Landing gracefully at its base, they all went through the front door in single file and silently walked up multiple flights of stairs before arriving at the front door of the Hokage's office. Sakura knocked three times, briskly, and permission to enter was granted.

Hinata and her companions entered.

The Hokage, Tsunade, was seated at a large wooden desk that was overflowing with various documents and articles. Beside her stood Shizune who held a small pink pig named TonTon. As she looked around the room she saw there were other ninjas in the room including Shino, Kiba, and Ino. After a couple minutes of everyone standing in place Tsunade finished her silent conversation with Shizune and spun around in her chair to face the assembled ninjas standing before her.

"Yamanaka Ino, Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba, Nara Shikamaru, Hyuga Hinata, Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, Akimichi Chouji, TenTen Kameyazi." She took a deep breath and continued on. "You have been selected to embark on a mission to retrieve Uchiha Itachi from wherever he may reside with the Akatsuki and bring him back to Konoha. As a missing nin of prodigious ability, he has caused much damage with the Akatsuki and must be returned to us before more harm comes to the rest of the shinobi world. He will be tried and punished from then on out."

She looked at each of the nine chosen ninjas in succession and folded her hands together on the desk in front of her.

"Do you accept this mission?"

Hinata breathed out a timid "Hai!" along with everyone else, shocked that she was to be sent on such a mission- and right after Naruto was mentioning Itachi, too! Perhaps it was merely a coincidence?

"Sadly, ten years of retrieval missions has reaped fruitless results in bringing Uchiha Itachi back to Konoha. He is an exceptional shinobi who is not- I repeat, _is not_- to be underestimated. Seeing as how he is seen as the prodigy of the Uchiha clan, he is highly skilled in genjutsu. His taijutsu and ninjutsu have also proven to be quite formidable."

Hinata glanced at the other ninjas around her. Naruto looked as confident and enthusiastic as ever. However, some of them like Kiba and Sakura were looking slightly uncomfortable with the situation at hand- she was to, for that matter. How could Naruto have compared her to Itachi? She was nowhere near achieving his skill level.

Her string of thoughts was severed short by the Hokage's continued speech.

He is now twenty-one years of age. I doubt any of you need a picture aid to remember and identify his physical appearance, but protocol is protocol and it must be followed."

She picked up a black-covered booklet which Hinata recognized as the bingo book; a collection of pictures of missing-nin from every village and their personal information. Tsunade flipped through multiple pages before she arrived at a specific one and turned the book around, holding it at the top with her left hand.

"This is the most recent copy of the bingo book. Luckily enough, an updated photograph of Itachi was found and placed inside. This," she said, tapping her index finger on Itachi's picture twice, "is who you will be searching for. Look long and look hard. Memorize it. Even if he is a member of the Akatsuki, something tells me that like any missing-nin, he will not be above using a disguise to throw any followers off his trail. Uchiha Itachi is evasive. Do not let him get away."

The eight ninjas around her nodded in understanding. She did the same. She then peered closely at the opened bingo book which was still held out in front of the Hokage.

Uchiha Itachi was a very handsome man, if she did say so herself. Pitch-black hair framed his face, long bangs hung in his equally dark, intense eyes. A notable facial feature she managed to pick out was the twin deep creases taking up residence on his face, one on each side starting just under the inner corner of each eye and extending south to the side of his mouth. He had an elegant nose and strong features, full lips and high cheekbones which protruded only slightly from his regal face. His long black hair was tied into a low ponytail at the back of his neck.

"Has everyone memorized this picture?" Tsunade questioned the group. All nine ninjas nodded and voiced their consent. She then closed the book and placed it beside her on her giant wooden mahogany desk.

As much as her loyalty to Konoha caused her inner shame to admit it, Hinata very highly doubted she could erase Uchiha Itachi's face from her mind even if she tried.

Even if she had Ino try using her clan's mind jutsu on her.

Even if she gained amnesia unexpectedly.

Hinata mentally facepalmed at the direction her thoughts had taken and focused on listening to the rest of what the Hokage had to say.

"This is an S-ranked mission. You are not to divulge information of this mission to anyone. I don't care who it is, _no one knows._"

Everyone nodded again. Tsunade sat back in her chair, relaxing.

"Nara Shikamaru will be responsible for splitting you up into a trio of three-man cells. You will travel together as a group. Our sources have informed us that at this point in time, Uchiha Itachi is hunting for the Hachibi with his partner, Hoshigaki Kisame. Your task will be as follows: Sakura and Hinata are both medics, or have proficient medic capabilities. They are not to be placed on the same team. Two teams will each have either Sakura or Hinata. The third team will have Naruto. In the case that you engage in battle with Itachi and Kisame, both teams with the medics will each assign themselves to take down one of the missing-nin. The third team will aid with either of the battles if necessary, or if one of your comrades is badly injured and is therefore being healed by either Sakura or Hinata. However, if aid is not needed the third team is to report back to Konoha immediately for gaining of intelligence. Naruto, you will be on the third team."

Naruto opened his mouth to complain but Tsunade cut him off.

"You are the kyuubi jinchuuriki host. We cannot have you fall into the wrong hands, especially when dealing with the Akatsuki on such close terms. If the slightest thing begins to go sour, you are to _come straight home_. Do you understand?"

Naruto nodded sullenly.

"As for the two teams that will be engaging in battle- if things do not look to be in your favour and you will die by fighting, I hereby order you to flee the scene and arrive back in Konoha as soon as possible. I will not purposely lose the lives of nine of my most promising ninjas for the sake of one missing-nin, no matter who he or she is."

"Hai."

"Naruto."

The ninja in question looked at Tsunade expectantly.

"Kakashi would have been deployed on this mission, considering he has the sharingan, but he is currently on a mission in Iwagakure with Hyuga Neji and Rock Lee."

The blonde shrugged. "Ne, he probably would've been too lazy to come anyway. All he ever does these days is read those Icha-Icha porn books; he won't think he'll be missing out on anything too big."

Tsunade turned to Hinata next, choosing to ignore the way Sakura dashed forth to Naruto and bashed him on the head and reprimanding him about respecting his elders even if they do have creepy book fetishes.

"Hinata, like I said with Naruto, I would have placed Neji on this mission if he were not away on another."

Hinata felt her heart skip a beat in utter disappointment. Was she just a second-best replacement to be thrown on the team to patch up some holes caused by her cousin's absence? Perhaps all of her hard work wasn't being realized by others after all.

Tsunade noticed Hinata's crestfallen face and smiled lightly.

"However, multiple ninjas have informed me of your quite rapid and impressive improvement in training and practices. They have given me superb examples of your skill level and therefore I deem you to be strong and capable enough to successfully handle a mission of this calibre. Good luck, Hinata."

Hinata smiled brightly at the Hokage before her and basked in her compliments.

Her moment was broken when a voice belonging to someone she almost forgot was there spoke.

"And what about me? My name was listed in the mission scroll."

Everyone in the room turned around and watched Sasuke, who was breathing rather heavily. He looked to be getting very close to losing his temper, and Hinata noticed his fists were tightly clenched in barely restrained anger. Tsunade approached him slowly, surely.

"Ah, yes."

Sasuke watched her expectantly.

"I included your name in the mission scroll for you to come here so I can hereby forbid you from coming on any mission related to the Akatsuki, including this one, in any way whatsoever."

Stunned silence followed her unexpected words.

However, Hinata had to admit the Hokage had made the right decision in doing so. If Sasuke ever got the chance to kill his older brother, he would undoubtedly take it without any hesitation.

"_What?_ You have no right to pull me off so many missions like that! If you would have just sent me on a solo mission to kill Itachi myself, we wouldn't be standing here having this meeting in the first place!"

Tsunade stood her ground confidently in the face of the young Uchiha's temper tantrum.

"That is exactly why I forbid you from this S-ranked mission and any others which are related to the Akatsuki. Violence is not the answer to anything. Holding grudges will get you nowhere. For all we know, perhaps your brother has a logical reason for doing what he did. Before the massacre he was a sound person with no signs of mental instability."

Sasuke's eyes flashed crimson as the full form of his developed three tomoe sharingan took over, spinning wildly.

"There is no excuse for murdering family!"

a different kind of silence took over this time, a silence falling over Hinata's heart. However... attractive Uchiha Itachi may be, he killed the entire family of a comrade. He left his younger brother to solitude and a life of anger and thoughts of revenge.

Such a thing could not be easily forgiven, if forgivable at all in the first place.

"We all live the life of shinobi, Sasuke. Not everything is as it seems. There is darkness everywhere you look, even in the sunniest of places."

Hinata was disturbingly reminded of what Naruto had said last night over dinner.

"_I doubt anything like that happened. I mean, come on, Hinata-chan. This is Konoha, our home. Everyone's super nice. Do you really believe something dark and twisted like that could happen? This place is like the epitome of sunshine and rainbows and happy people everywhere you look, I just know nothing bad happened. Itachi just had a random itch that needed to be scratched, I guess."_

"Are you saying you know what happened 'behind the scenes', if there are any?"

Tsunade shook her head solemnly. "No. I am only stating that as a ninja, you need to master the art of looking underneath the underneath."

Naruto smacked his face with a hand and mumbled something incoherent about Kakashi taking over the words of everyone around him.

Everyone conveniently ignored him.

"Well, I don't need to hear any of your pep bullshit. After all that _Itachi_-" he spat out the word like a contagious disease- "did, there has only been one path for me to take."

The Hokage raised an eyebrow, albeit disinterestedly. "And what might that path be, Sasuke? Humor me."

He obliged, ignoring her last comment. "Revenge."

She watched the Uchiha before her with a level eye. "Is this how it's going to be?"

Sasuke said nothing, but stared straight into her eyes, his own crimson ones unflinching with confidence and determination.

She nodded once before turning her back on him and strolling leisurely towards her desk and pulling out a specially marked scroll.

Hinata knew what kind of scroll this was- she had seen the Hokage use it once before for an urgent mission requiring a squad of ANBU. Tsunade unrolled the scroll on the floor in front of her desk and bit into her thumb, something any knowledgeable ninja could identify as the beginning act of a summoning jutsu. on the scroll was a list of all Leaf ANBU. Hinata knew firsthand Tsunade had memorized the entirety of the list and with three quick smears of her bloody thumb upon the unrolled length of paper she then placed her right hand upon the designated space and loudly said "_Kuchiyose no jutsu!_"

A big plume of smoke appeared before gradually dissipating, revealing three members of ANBU- none of which Hinata fully recognized.

A female with long purple hair, her face covered in a mask like her two comrades, kneeled down on one knee, her head bent.

"You called, Hokage-sama?"

"Uzuki Yugao, Sai, Yamato. Your mission is to guard Uchiha Sasuke at all times and ensure he does not leave the village under any circumstances. Do you accept this mission?"

the three masked individuals before the Hokage spoke in unison.

"Hai."

"Good. Consider this a... B-rank mission, at best."

Sasuke's look darkened even more, if that was even possible. Hinata knew the Hokage was purposely mocking the young Uchiha's strength, skills and capability by labelling him as a B-rank mission subject. She found the situation to be only slightly amusing, but mostly uncalled for.

Hinata observed what she could of the three ANBU. The one named Yugao sported the long purple hair. She guessed Sai was the one who had the short black hair and pale skin, similar to Sasuke's and looked to be about the same age. That meant the last man was named Yamato, who had brown hair and a fairly muscular figure.

The three ANBU walked to where Sasuke stood and formed themselves into a guard- Yugao on his right, Sai on his left and Yamato pulling up the rear. Sasuke glanced about himself, disgusted with the thought of having just gained himself three new babysitters. His venomous glare at Tsunade spoke volumes but she just shrugged it off and smiled in a condescending manner.

"Remember, Uchiha, you asked for it."

He growled and was about to say something to her, undoubtedly rude, when she cut him off abruptly.

"You are to meet at the front gate prepared to leave for dawn. That gives each of you approximately one hour to gather your things and report fully packed and ready to go. I suspect you will be away on your mission for at least a month, so pack accordingly."

Everyone nodded. "Hai, Hokage-sama."

Everyone but Naruto, that is. He just waved a lazy hand in a very Kakashi-esque manner and said "See ya later, Baa-chan!" before running out of the office before Tsunade could pummel him.

The Hokage still turned red with anger and smashed a fist onto her mahogany desk, successfully creating a large split right down the middle.

"_Naruto!"_

The remaining eight ninjas quickly followed suit and made a swift exit.

Hinata and Naruto flash-stepped over various buildings, on their way back to the apartment so they could gather their required items and head out to the front gate.

"It's ironic, isn't it?" Naruto queried.

Hinata didn't have to ask him to know what he was talking about specifically.

"It is. And I feel a bit bad for Sasuke-san, but I really think she made the right decision on the matter. He would only hinder the mission and cause it to turn into a failure by killing the very subject we were sent to retrieve in the first place."

"Eh, don't worry about him. With all that talk about revenge he's been throwing around, he just got what he deserved. It was a long time coming."

"Sakura must be breaking down in tears."

Naruto paused for a second. "She... Sakura is strong. I'm sure she realizes what Baa-chan did was just what was best for the village she swore to protect. She'll get over it with time."

Hinata glanced at him out the corner of her eye.

"But love is blind to reason, Naruto-kun. We both know just how mush Sakura-chan cares for Sasuke-san, and how long she's held those feelings for. Chances are she's going to go back to the Hokage and demand him to be freed of his guards."

"Probably, but that doesn't mean Baa-chan's gonna do it," he sang.

Hinata sighed, feeling at a loss for hope. "I hope she doesn't, for everyone's sake."

Just then the duo arrived at their apartment. Landing on the ground, they each took turns and jumped into the kitchen window- Hinata first, then Naruto afterwards.

Walking into her small but cozy bedroom, Hinata grabbed a light lavender travel pack and began gathering mandatory items.

Three uniforms, check.

Undergarments and toiletries, check.

Medicinal herbs, ointments and bandages for injuries, check.

Money for food and required items along the way, check.

Was there anything else she needed?

"...Naruto?" she called him from the other room and moments later he entered, looking a little flustered.

"Nani?"

Hinata smiled sheepishly and glanced down at the arranged items spewed all over her bed- except for her undergarments, of course. Those she had already tucked away safely within her travel pack.

"I was just wondering, ne... I feel like I'm missing something, but I can't put my finger on it."

Naruto frowned. "Me too." He then observed her gatherings for a few moments before adding to his commentary. "You should definitely bring additional weapons. And summoning scrolls, I know there's some of that special medical stuff Sakura-chan gave you that you like to carry around with you a lot."

Hinata felt like slapping herself.

"Kami, you're right. I don't know how I managed to forget the two most important things... Arigatou, Naruto-kun." She rewarded him with a brief but heartfelt smile as she hurriedly grabbed the missing items before efficiently packing everything within her travel pack- with room to spare- and fastened it closed. Slinging one of the straps over a slender shoulder, she ushered Naruto out of her room and into the hall.

"Now, Naruto-kun, let's see what you're missing."

Naruto had arranged his belongings in a similar fashion, laid out over his hurriedly made bed in haste. She went over everything that was present.

Multiple uniforms, toiletries, money, weapons and scrolls...

Something clicked in Hinata's brain.

"Ne, Naruto... I normally wouldn't say this, but seeing as how we are going on a month-long mission..."

Naruto watched her quizzically. "What is it?"

"...You forgot to pack any ramen."

His eyes widened like saucers. "Holy friggen' crap! I can't _believe_ I'd ever forget ramen, tired or not. Hinata, I love you!" so giddy was Naruto that as he ran out the door to raid his cupboards he paused for an instant to plant a sloppy but chaste kiss on her cheek. Despite her strictly platonic feelings for the blonde she still blushed in embarrassment.

Naruto came by not a minute later, his arms overflowing with ramen cups. "Hinata-chan, do you think this is enough?"

"I think it's more than just enough, Naruto-kun. But nevermind that, bring it here."

Naruto dumped his ramen beside his messy pile of clothes and started stuffing everything in his travel pack. Hinata quickly stopped his movements and pulled everything back out, despite the blonde's complaints. She then proceeded to fold up every article of clothing neatly and in a compact manner so that it would conserve much-needed space. By the time she completed her task five minutes later, Naruto's travel pack held all his gathered items plus all of his ramen- there was even room for some extra.

"Wow! Hinata-chan, you're the best! Dattebayo!"

Hinata merely sighed and shook her head, smiling contentedly.

"Come on, Naruto-kun. We have to go now or we're gonna be late."

He glanced up from his position by the counter, in the process of stuffing ten additional cups of ramen into his travel pack. After fumbled with the last cup for a moment he managed to get it staying in place and quickly pulled over the top flap before it could decide to fall out again. He hurriedly fastened the straps and ran over to Hinata, one foot already out the door. Hinata noticed the strings keeping Naruto's travel pack closed were already coming undone due to the blonde's lack of patience. She pulled on his arm, causing him to flail briefly before he caught his balance once more.

"Hey! Hinata-chan, what was tha-"

"Relax, Naruto-kun," Hinata soothed him. "You didn't fasten your bag properly. I'm just fixing it before all that ramen of yours rains all over Konoha."

Naruto's eyes widened before he shook it off and gave her a big thumbs-up, in a very similar fashion to Guy-sensei. "Again, Hinata-can, you're a lifesaver!"

Hinata couldn't quite tell whether or Naruto was making a pun or just being Naruto. Either way, she trekked to the bottom floor of the apartment with Naruto and with a brief goodbye to Chichi-san they flash-stepped onto a nondescript building with ease and set off into the night sky which was just beginning to lighten with hints of sunshine.

In two minutes they reached the village gates. Hinata did a head count- everyone else was already present, except for Shikamaru. He appeared within view approximately five minutes later, yawning widely and trudging along lethargically.

"Come on, Shikamaru, let's go already!"

The Nara sighed, unamused. "This is going to be such a drag." He then glanced around disinterestedly. "Is everyone here? ...Good. Let's go."

Without further ado, the eight teenage ninjas left the Village Hidden in the Leaf at a full-out run, not knowing what the next few weeks had to offer.

Hinata wasn't so sure she ever did.

I had a random second burst of writing energy, so here's yet another chapter for you all! :p

Please review/comment! ^-^


	8. Kings and Queens

Chapter 8, everyone! (yay)

Please let me know what you think :]

"_The age of man is over  
A darkness comes at dawn  
These lessons that we've learned here  
Have only just begun"_

_-'Kings and Queens'- 30 Seconds To Mars_

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Trees of every seed and ethnicity flashed by in a multi-shaded blur as Hinata and her comrades flash-stepped through the unending foliage surrounding the outskirts of Konoha. They had been on the move for roughly thirty minutes now, and Hinata found it somewhat odd that not a single word had been spoken amongst them this entire time because they were more often than not a group who preferred conversation and communication. It was probably due to the unexpected- for the most part- mission details that no one had seen coming. Every ninja Hinata knew had heard something of Uchiha Itachi, and although their personal opinions of him differed vastly they all agreed solemnly upon one thing-

Anyone who took him on was, well... _fucked._

Shino hadn't uttered a single syllable, incoherent or not, since the beginning of their journey. That wasn't really anything that particularly worried Hinata, unlike the uncharacteristic spasm of muteness which overtook Kiba. Even Naruto hadn't said a single thing; and that was something that truly worried her.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Sakura just looked like she was under a lot of strain. Hinata bet she knew why. With Sasuke's confinement to Konoha on top of his thirst for revenge and a mission directly related to the love of her life, the subject of which being the subject all of Sasuke's hatred was directed towards, Hinata knew she would be going through a tough time. It was times like this that made the Hyuga thankful she didn't have to worry about any lovers or boyfriends- the stress of going on missions and the very real possibility of death on the battlefield was something she knew she could do without, because she knew she would have long since frayed her nerves and fallen into an irreparable depression.

This must be why it was written in the shinobi handbook that ninjas were never to love, or fall in love. Obviously Konoha just kind of skipped over that rule; there was love in her village everywhere she looked- and the strongest of bonds were more often than not held between shinobi and kunoichi. A good example would be of her and Shikamaru's senseis- Kurenai and Asuma had an infatuation with each other for as long as either team could remember, and had finally decided to get into a relationship early the year before. And, to Hinata's excitement, three months ago Kurenai had given birth to a beautiful little girl who they named Hiromi, which translated to 'generous beauty'. She fit her namesake quite well if Hinata did say so herself- she adorned baby-fine black hair and Asuma's sparkling moss green eyes with Kurenai's facial features. She would grow up to be a heartbreaker in no time.

_Thump. Thump. Thu-CRACK!_

Hinata was pulled out of her musings when she heard the loud snap of a sizeable tree branch crashing to the forest floor. It wasn't until she heard some very familiar screeches that she realized someone must have gone down with it. She paused, along with everyone else, and watched as both tree branch and comrade fell to the ground.

"AAAARGHH! WHAT THE HELL, YOU STUPID TREE? YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO KEEP ME IN THE AIR, NOT BREAK WHILE I'M JUMPING ON YOU, YOU BAKA!"

A yellow mop of spiky blonde hair bounced around in anger as Naruto sat underneath the tree branch from far below, waving his right fist around in the air like he wanted to pummel it. No one said anything for a few moments and merely watched, silently amused. Finally Shikamaru leapt from the branch he was on to land beside Hinata, his hands resting comfortably in the deep pockets of his ninja pants as he slouched over in his typical fashion, and looked around at everyone disinterestedly. His ponytail of spiky brown hair waved as it blew slightly in the breeze that had gradually picked up over the beginning of their journey.

"We might as well stop here," he said lazily.

Kiba looked at him, incredulous. "What do you mean, we'll stop here? We only just started travelling, and it'll take days to reach Itachi, if not longer!" Hinata noticed that from down below, Naruto's facial expression wasn't too far off either, obviously in agreement with the Inuzuka.

Shikamaru just sighed.

"What a drag," he complained. "I don't know how much of Tsunade's lecture you may have listened to, but in case you haven't noticed, I still need to assign compatible teams so we may be able to successfully battle and capture Itachi once we _do _find him. Without proper strategizing, especially against a very perceptive missing-nin, we must be fully equipped and prepared- and that starts with splitting up and moving out accordingly."

Kiba sweatdropped, feeling a little put out by his comrade's logical explanation. Hinata's heart went out to him. Naruto, on the other hand, just flailed comically.

"We don't need to split up, dattebayo! We can just attack them full-force and take them down with the element of surprise! Who cares about all this boring planning stuff anyway? I don't wanna just sit around here and do nothing when we could already be on our way."

Kiba stood still on his branch, watching Naruto like he was considering siding with the blonde's words. Shikamaru uttered an exasperated groan and rubbed his forehead with the heel of his palm before turning to Naruto once more.

"_I_ care about pre-planning. The element of surprise will never pose any advantage over an older and more experienced prodigious ninja who is always prepared for anything. Your tactics will only get us all killed." His eyes sharpened unusually, becoming hard in appearance. "I refuse to let any of my team-mates perish, especially not due to such ridiculous tactics." Naruto frowned in response but didn't say anything else. Shikamaru took his silence as submission and turned to face Hinata and the others.

"Alright, Hokage-sama made a request of me to split us into three cells consisting of three ninjas, one of which on two teams will either Sakura or Hinata. The two teams including these medics will be the offensive teams and will attack either Itachi or Kisame. I will attempt to assemble teams which will be best suited to battle one or the other successfully."

Everyone nodded in agreement and stood silent as he continued.

"Everyone here knows Itachi is a specialized dojutsu user. His sharingan will almost certainly be used in this battle, and on one team we need a ninja who will be able to revert or nullify its effects to some degree." He turned to Hinata. "You will be the first member of Team One. The Gentle Fist alongside the use of your Byakugan allows you to see and observe chakra network patters and disable or change their flow, correct?"

Hinata nodded dutifully.

"Although you are the medic for this team, your sufficient chakra level in addition to your chakra control will allow you to both battle and have enough chakra reserved to heal your comrades, if such a thing will be necessary. I have personally observed your skill and it has greatly improved within a very short amount of time. If at all possible, the best tactic would be to disable the use of Itachi's sharingan, even if only temporarily."

"Hai."

"Ino, you will battle alongside Hinata. In the instance he traps any of us in a genjutsu we will require your _Mind-Body Switch Technique_- when this happens, it will be the duty of Team Three to guard Ino's body so that no harm comes to it. Ino, you are also an exceptional kunoichi with excellent battle strategy techniques that I have noticed over the years. I will also be joining your team. With the use of my _Shadow Imitation Technique _and proper planning, I hope to be able to have Ino take over Itachi's body until I have him trapped with my shadows. Hinata will then finish the job and our mission will be complete."

He glanced at Ino from the corner of her eye. "However, I should warn you, Ino. The memories and intentions of Itachi may very well make themselves clear to you and it will be unpleasant. I suggest you attempt to mentally prepare yourself for this."

Team Two will consist of Chouji, Kiba and Sakura. Kisame Hoshigaki is a brute shinobi who prides himself with his vast strength, and is on par with Itachi. However, he carries Samehada- a chakra-devouring sword. You must avoid it at all costs if you wish to avoid certain death. You three are all ninjas who have very offensive techniques that I believe will counteract his own, if you are very careful. Sakura is an exceptional genjutsu user as well as proficient with chakra-enhanced physical blows, two of the crucial points in this battle. Kiba's _Fang Passing Fang _and _Human-Beast Combination Transformation: Double-Headed Wolf _techniques will prove to be very useful against him. Chouji's _Multi-Size Technique, Super Open Palm Slap_ and _Ballistic Waterwheel _Techniques will be very effective, especially the latter seeing as how it is very good to use against water release users such as Kisame because it nullifies their attacks and uses it against them instead."

Hinata watched on, impressed with Shikamaru's ability to so strategically categorize and team up a group of such diverse ninjas. She wouldn't have been able to do any better herself, even if she tried.

"That leaves Team Three, consisting of Naruto, Shino and TenTen. Since of course Naruto is the kyuubi host, the reason for his placement goes without saying. Shino is very proficient with his bug user techniques and therefore, if anything should go wrong either during battle or on the trip back, he can dispatch his insects to send a message to the Hokage. TenTen's weaponry skills are outstanding and will provide group protection on their run back to the village if need be."

"But I don't wanna run back to the village once the action starts up," Naruto whined. He had finally freed himself from the giant tree limb and was standing on Kiba's branch, directly in front of hers and Shikamaru's. "Where's the fun in _that_?"

Shikamaru merely shook his head. "My decision has been made, Naruto. The assigned teams will best make the mission a success."

Naruto opened his mouth to complain some more, but Hinata gave him a stern glance. "Naruto, this is for the best. You want the mission to be a success, don't you?"

He frowned and sent Hinata a look something akin to betrayal. "You mean you're actually taking _his_ side, Hinata-chan? Come _on_."

Hinata pulled her gaze from his and looked away, feeling a little ashamed and blushing slightly in embarrassment. She was saved when Shino spoke up on her behalf.

"Naruto." Shino's low, monotonous voice was quiet but carried across the space around them effortlessly. "Hinata, like Shikamaru and the rest of us, know this is the right way to go about this mission. You will not always get the 'fun' or 'exciting' part in every mission you get, but everyone on every mission plays their own very important part."

The blonde scowled. "What's so important about standing around and watching while everyone else fights?"

Shino said nothing at first but his chin dipped down slightly, causing early morning rays of light to glint off his ever-present shades. His hands both remained in his teal coat pockets, unmoving. His bushy hair stood in place despite the breeze that had picked up.

"You are responsible for guarding Ino-San's body while she overtakes Itachi's mind, and therefore preventing the death of a comrade. I would say that is a very important duty to fulfill."

Naruto shut his mouth but turned his head to the side, his eyes downcast. Hinata could feel that he felt ashamed about so inadvertently downplaying the need to protect a comrade when he always swore he would do anything to prevent harm coming to them. He looked up but not meeting any of their ayes until they came to rest on the female blonde. He slowly raised his eyes until they met hers.

"Gomen, Ino-san."

Ino said nothing but merely nodded her head twice in acceptance of his apology. He then looked at the others, in the eye, and grinned bashfully, scratching at the back of his head like he always did when he was put in an awkward situation.

"So...ne, Shikamaru-san, what do we do next?" everyone focused their attention to the lazy genius, who only shrugged, his attention on the floating clouds passing overhead.

"We keep going."

Everyone prepared for takeoff before Kiba interrupted. "Sakura, do you have that thing with you?"

The pinkette frowned at him for a second before her face morphed into one of understanding. "Oh, right." She pulled off her backpack and unfastened the security straps, pulling up the top flap and reaching inside. A second later her hand emerged, containing a bundle of nondescript black material. She stood up and leapt over to Kiba's branch and gave it to him. He took it from her grasp and held it out in front of his huge white and brown ninja dog, Akamaru. The dog sniffed at it for a few moments.

"Woof!"

"Nani?" Hinata looked over her shoulder at Naruto, who looked confused. As a matter of fact a good deal of the group did, watching Kiba, Akamaru and sakura expectantly. "What is that?"

Sakura glanced over at her blonde team-mate, smiling grimly. "One of Itachi's shirts."

Naruto's eyes almost bugged out of their sockets. "What? How did you manage to get something like that?"

"Hokage-sama sent me to the Uchiha compound to extract something that would have Itachi's scent on it to help with the mission, since we have Akamaru here to help us out." As she spoke she raised a hand absentmindedly and affectionately patted Akamaru a few times on the head. The animal in turn leaned into the attention and uttered a quiet but happy "woof!"

"Well... does he know the scent?" Naruto asked, getting antsy again at the prospect of finding Itachi. Kiba nodded. "Akamaru said the scent is weak, as to be expected from sitting in a dusty drawer for so long, but he has it. I'll keep the shirt on me in case he needs to take another whiff later."

The blonde shook his head. "I'll never understand how you can understand a dog. It's not like he can talk or anything."

Kiba sent him a look that clearly stated how little intelligence he thought the blonde contained under his unruly mop of hair. "Why the hell do you think animals make sounds? They communicate, just not in a language you can understand. I, however-" Kiba tapped at the red triangular marking on his left cheek and then his nose "-have the ability to communicate with animals of the canine variety. Obviously requiring much more skill than you'll ever manage to gather up in your pinkie finger. Right, boy?" Akamaru barked out an eager "Woof!" in agreement while Kiba waggled the pinkie finger of his left hand for good measure, smirking in a cocky manner in the blonde's direction.

Naruto scowled at the Inuzuka and began to travel solo in the direction they were heading before his crash landing. Kiba stood back and watched from afar, standing slightly on his tip-toes to catch sight of him through the dense foliage.

"Oh, real mature, Naruto!" Akamaru barked an agreement.

Shikamaru sighed again. "Hey Naruto, get your ass back here!" the blonde failed to turn around or even send the rest of the group so much as a glance over his shoulder- if anything he just began to travel at a faster pace. The Nara muttered something about being troublesome and turned to the rest of the group. "Come on, let's go. We'll just have to catch up with him."

All eight ninjas took to the trees simultaneously, forming a beeline train headed in Naruto's direction. They soon came to find Naruto was much faster than any of them ever gave him proper credit for- they chased his tail for at least two hours until they finally caught up with him- but even as he fell into the group he said nothing, becoming as mute as he was at the start of their journey.

They ignored him.

Hinata kept pace with her comrades for many an hour, until the sun began to set in the west, painting a masterpiece for a sunset. They had travelled without any distractions, ambushes or breaks since Naruto's fall- knowing Itachi was elusive and skilled at hiding in plain sight or the most unexpected areas would make it ten times more difficult to find the already skilled missing-nin and therefore, no time could afford to be wasted at any cost by doing anything but the utmost necessary tasks- such as sleep.

Hinata was travelling directly behind Shikamaru now, placing her as second in the line of ninjas. The male in front of her hadn't said anything since giving orders, but that was hardly uncommon. However a few minutes later he jumped down to the left and landed in a small clearing surrounded by trees such as the ones they were currently in. Everyone stopped due to the Nara's deviation in direction and stepped to a halt on multiple branches.

"We will stop here for the night. Shino, Kiba, TenTen and Chouji, you guys are responsible for setting up camp. Sakura, set a fire. Ino and Naruto, please gather what food you can find- we have packed a good deal, but we cannot afford to eat it all in the first few nights. Hinata, that leaves you and I to scout a perimeter and set traps. We will be the first watch shift when everyone retires to bed."

Everyone went about, working on their assigned chores. Hinata and Shikamaru set out through the trees- it was too dark to flash-step, even with Hinata's Byakugan it would be a risk she was not willing to take.

Shikamaru broke through her thoughts with an order. "Hinata, I want you to patrol the left half of the perimeter within a five mile diameter and set traps accordingly. I'll do the same on the right half. We will meet back here in one hour and return to camp."

The indigo-haired kunoichi nodded her head in consent and with that, Shikamaru left and the Hyuga went about her task.

Some people may have thought Hinata to be merely disinterested in her work as a kunoichi or just downright lazy. This was not the case. In order to make the lengthy task of setting traps a lot more time-savvy, she put her hands together to form a four-string seal.

"_Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu_!"

Ten large plumes of smoke suddenly appeared and expanded before fading away with the breeze. In its wake stood ten identical copies of Hinata, each one watching her intently and waiting for orders.

"Set efficient, stealthy traps along the left half of this perimeter within a five mile radius. Do not miss any opportunities that may take potential enemies by surprise. You know what I would do. Make me proud of my improvement as a ninja."

Hinata said the last part with a small smile on her face. Her clones responded, nodding their heads in acknowledgement.

"Hai!"

They all took to the trees, running in different directions in a fan formation, Hinata being the base. She watched them go and waited until they were out of sight before heading into the foliage herself, making sure to keep herself covered by shadows or trees at all times.

"_Byakugan_!"

The veins near Hinata's temples and under her eyes throbbed and expanded with the activation of her kekkei genkai. Her vision changed from full colour scheme to monochrome black, white and grey. Using her birthright to her full capability she scanned the area around her, turning on the spot in an achingly slow motion so as not to miss a single thing. She could spot Shikamaru prowling through underbrush approximately nine miles to the west, in the process of concluding the setup of a particularly intricate trap. Beyond his presence she could see for another three miles or so, but nothing alarming caught her attention. Continuing her scan she saw nothing but typical forest wildlife and more trees, and occasionally one of her team-mates as they scrounged around for food or firewood. She spied Ino and Naruto at a creek roughly four miles north. Naruto appeared to be splashing around in the creek while Ino stood watch with a handful of kunai, throwing them with deadly accuracy every time a fish jumped out of the water. Hinata smirked as the blonde lost his balance and fell face-first into the water with a loud _splash_. Ino, on the other hand, was laughing hysterically.

Moving on, she continued searching undergrowth for threats. Nothing worrisome was seen.

"_Caw!"_

Hinata jumped a foot in the air at the unexpected noise and looked to the treetops by instinct, her eyes scanning for the cause of her disturbance. She searched for a couple of minutes but the forest was getting darker and darker by the second and making it even harder to see what made that ungodly shriek. After hesitating for a moment and giving the branches one last quick glance, Hinata stepped forward to a large rock twenty feet away and crouched once more, her surveillance continuing.

"_Caw! Caw!_"

Hinata uttered a string of heartfelt curses under her breath as her heart skipped three beats. The sound had come from directly behind her this time. Mentally and physically preparing herself for a moment, she moved to turn around but halted. Instead she widened the range of her Byakugan to see what was behind her without giving in to her urge to turn and see for herself as a normal person would, meanwhile practicing her skill.

Whatever made that noise was sitting directly in her only blind spot- the one that stemmed from her upper thoracic vertebrae.

Acting on impulse of fear of anything being in the range that left her defenceless against anything that may attack her, Hinata whirled around rapidly and stared into the trees where her Byakugan was unable to.

There, on a particularly nondescript tree branch of a particularly nondescript tree, sat a particularly nondescript bird.

Hinata let out a breath she hadn't even known she was holding in the first place. She really let herself be scared by a mere bird, of all things? She almost felt ashamed of herself and her overactive imagination. A bird would have no reason to attack her, surely. She was about to turn her back on the animal and continue her search when it turned its head slightly and caused its head to reflect the rising moonlight at just the right angle.

This bird had red eyes- well, the one she could see.

Hinata refrained from gasping and narrowed her eyes, now studying the bird before her. It was a crow, a male from the looks of it- females were generally smaller in comparison. The crow like all others she has ever seen was pitch black and its plumes appeared to be well tended to.

She looked closer and noted with astonishment that its left eye, the red one, held the familiar three-tomoe pattern of the sharingan that Hinata remembered witnessing on Sasuke during the Chuunin exams. She marvelled at the irony sitting before her and shook her head, trying in vain to clear it.

Why would a crow hold the sharingan? There was no possible way it was born with a kekkei genkai- such a thing was unheard of; an impossibility. She knew for a fact that Sasuke didn't have crows as summons- he had snake summons, courtesy of Anko. There was no one else who could have an animal summon, with their kekkei genkai, no less...

Unless, the user of this summon was Uchiha Itachi.

"_Caw! Caw!_"

The crow flew south, its obsidian wings flapping purposefully. Hinata stared at its retreating form before numbly finishing her scan. When the one hour was up all ten of her clones vanished and Hinata gained all of their memories- they had set up a good deal of traps in excellent places- even some in the treetops. Hinata smiled, satisfied with their work, and relocated to hers and Shikamaru's meeting place with the use of a transportation jutsu.

They went over what had happened, with the exception of the crow. Hinata was not completely sure herself just what or who that crow was and if it was being controlled, a summon, or just an ordinary bird with a freak defect- perhaps an escapee of one of Orochimaru's hideous experiments. Hinata decided she would not say anything until she was sure of it.

Back at camp makeshift tents were set up, a sizeable fire was blazing with fish on sticks surrounding it, and everyone was seated in a circular fashion, munching on various berries and what appeared to be roots. At Hinata's nonplussed expression, Naruto explained.

"Oh, hey Hinata-chan! We got food, you want some?" He held out a small container of berries and unidentifiable objects. "They're berries and some root vegetables we found. Well, Ino did, knowing all this stuff about plants. I just got the berries."

Ino smiled proudly at the indirect compliment.

Well, that explained it.

"Arigatou, Naruto-kun." She sat down beside the blonde and accepted the container of food. The fish were done cooking a minute or so later and everyone pulled a stick from the ground and dug in. Fifteen minutes later everyone was done eating and retired to bed. Sakura, Kiba and Shikamaru were already in their tents- there were four set up, they were sleeping in pairs, the same gender together, of course- and everyone else was cleaning up after their meal when they heard an unexpected sound.

"_Caw!_"

Hinata jumped again, startled and now unnerved. She could tell it was the same crow as earlier, but the moon was now shining on its right side so the others remained unaware of its peculiar ocular trait.

"_Caw! Caw!_"

Ino looked up and wrinkled her nose, holding the discarded sticks used for cooking the fish in her arms. "What the hell? Why is there a crow watching us?"

Hinata looked at Ino then back at the crow, noticing that the crow did indeed appear to be inspecting them, quite closely at that. Its head bobbed slightly as it jumped from foot to foot, flapping its wings in an agitated way. Its feathers ruffled with both its movements and the wind that had progressively picked up over the day's travels.

Shino watched the bird, but didn't say anything.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Don't start freaking out, Ino, it's just a bird for crying out loud."

She glared at him. "Well, _look_ at it. It's just sitting there, staring at us. It's creepy."

"Then go to bed. It won't be able to stare at you if you're in your tent."

She scoffed and threw the sticks away in a nearby small ravine before walking back over to where she and Naruto stood. "You're just jealous he likes my good looks more than yours."

Naruto tilted his head slightly, confused. "Are you saying I have good looks?"

Ino sent him a look that bordered on offended. "Ugh, you're so impossible. I don't know how Sakura deals with you. I almost feel bad for her. _Almost._"

Naruto growled. "Hey, don't go around insulting Sakura-chan!"

"I wasn't insulting her, dobe. I was sympathizing."

He settled for a healthy glare. "If _that's _what you want to call it..."

Hinata sighed and retreated to the tent in which Sakura resided. The pinkette was already out cold, so she quietly moved over to her prepared bedroll and lay down, falling into a quick and dreamless slumber.

Trees flew by as wings flapped strongly against the northbound wind stream. He flew in this fashion for at least another fifteen minutes before cawing and descending to a tiny clearing which held only a small fire and two males. He landed on the smaller one's shoulders, his talons latching securely into the fabric of is peculiar red and black cloak.

"_Caw_!"

The man whose shoulders he sat on said nothing but listened intently as he relayed to him the strangers' location and activities, including the description of a particular female with strange pale eyes.

The man nodded.

Another pair of eyes watched from across the fire, rows of razor-sharp teeth glinting in firelight as he spoke in a gruff tone. "So, we have them?"

Obsidian orbs stared, unseeing, into the flames before him. He nodded once. "Hai. We will depart at dawn. Be prepared."

The gruff voice chuckled again. "Good," he said, a hand reaching behind his left shoulder to stroke the large handle of a particularly formidable looking sword wrapped in bindings. "I can't wait to cut them down."

So there's chapter 8, I hope you liked it!

Please review/comment. And thank you to those who have ^-^


	9. Warm Kitty

Here's the next chapter :D pleasepleaseplease review or comment, I love hearing feedback.

"_Soft kitty, warm kitty_

_Little ball of fur,_

_Happy kitty, sleepy kitty_

_Purr, purr, purr."_

_-'Warm Kitty'- Penny & Sheldon from 'The Big Bang Theory'_

The sky above their campground was just turning from black to grey with the first hints of sunrise when Hinata awoke. Turning to her left she saw that Sakura was already out the tent so she followed the pinkette's example and emerged herself. Sakura and the others were in the process of gathering their things and TenTen was dousing the fire with a small container of water collected from the stream. Hinata quickly moved to gather her things together as well and in five minutes the entire group was prepared to continue their journey.

Sakura was standing by her pack at the far edge of the clearing, staring out into the forest before them with a look of worry and concern. Wondering what was on her friend's mind; Hinata made a beeline for her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Sakura-chan, is something wrong? You look troubled."

The pinkette broke out of her daze and turned her gaze upon her friend, smiling lightly. "Of course, Hinata-chan. It's just, I feel like we should be on our guard today. I mean, more than usual."

Hinata's eyebrows furrowed slightly, perplexed. "Why is that?"

Shino, who was packing up the last of his things a few feet away, picked up his travel pack and placed it securely upon his shoulders before walking over to the chatting pair of females.

"I feel Sakura is right in her assumptions. This morning my insects have picked up a trace of two formidable chakra signatures. However, they are quite faint. They must have either come by this way a very long ago or masked their chakra with much skill. It was almost untraceable."

Hinata nodded in understanding. "So... could your insects trace the chakra signatures to anyone specific?"

Shino shook his head gravely. "No. They can only pin chakra signatures to those they have previously come into contact with."

"Meaning the chakra signatures belong to people we have most likely never met before, right Shino-kun?" the ninja in question merely nodded his head once in confirmation.

Sakura suddenly cut in. "Wait. Did you just say those chakra signatures were _almost_ untraceable?"

"Yes."

She began to smile in confidence as she spoke, reaching in her back pocket and coming out with a pair of worn black leather combat gloves. She pulled them on and cracked her knuckles, the surprisingly loud sound echoing throughout the area around them. "So... that means they can still be traced. Correct?"

"My insects can try, yes. But leading us to the pair themselves is an unlikely scenario."

Sakura waved a hand. "Details." She turned to face the rest of the group who had been listening to them talk with half an ear. "Listen up, guys. Shino may have a lead to the pair we're searching for. His insects have picked up on two faint chakra signatures belonging to a pair of formidable shinobi. I think we're best to check out the situation before moving on, in case it does lead us to our prize."

Shikamaru looked to the sky for guidance and sighed unenthusiastically. "Fine, it's not like we have any better leads to go off of."

"Woof! Woof!" Akamaru was sniffing the ground but suddenly started barking in a wild frenzy. Kiba's attention was stolen immediately and he listened to the ninja dog with utmost concentration. After a minute or so, he went to his travel pack and flipped it open, riffling through its contents before uttering a curse.

"Nande?" Naruto inquired.

Kiba looked around and growled. "The shirt is missing."

Naruto frowned. "What shirt? You're wearing one right now."

"Not _my_ shirt, you baka," Kiba snarled. He glared at the blonde with vehemence. "I'm talking about Itachi's shirt- the one Sakura gave me so Akamaru would have his scent to trace. He just told me he sniffed the same chakra signatures that Shino's bugs detected, and there were traces of it on my pack. Akamaru says there's a trail leading through the forest, going south."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What? Then what are we waiting for? Let's get started already and _look_!"

For once, no one complained against the blonde's suggestion. The group took off with Kiba and Shino in the lead, Akamaru and Shino's insects guiding the way through thick foliage and underbrush. Ino got smacked in the face with various forestry by Naruto tramping through the evergreens with solid determination called him multiple names in retaliation. He didn't respond to her prodding but continued marching forth, looking all around him for any possible signs the two members of Akatsuki were anywhere nearby.

They eventually happened across a clearing that was spacious enough but quite a bit smaller than the one Hinata and her comrades had taken up residence in the night before. There were no signs of human life in the area, but to a shinobi that meant next to nothing.

Shikamaru stepped forward. "Is this where the chakra signatures lead?" Akamaru woofed in confirmation and was currently sniffing at a fallen log that was covered with Shino's investigating insects.

"Woof! Woof woof!"

Kiba stared at his dog with much interest. "Is that so, boy?"

"Woof!"

"Nandayo?" Ino inquired.

Their chakra, whoever it was, is a lot stronger. They weren't attempting to mask their chakra, and judging from the strength and freshness of it, they were only here until quite recently."

"So... does it belong to Itachi and Kisame?" TenTen asked. Both Shino and Kiba nodded their heads.

"Most likely," Kiba confirmed.

"Cha!" everyone turned around and stared at Sakura in slight confusion. The pinkette growled. "That stupid, pompous, idiotic jerk Uchiha! I'm gonna knock his block off!"

Kiba laughed slightly. "Eh... ne, Sakura. You're on Team Two... your part of the mission is to battle with Kisame, not Itachi. We need to bring him home alive as well, remember? Mission orders straight from Hokage-sama."

She deflated a little, but it was easy to tell Sakura was still fuming- fury was rolling off of her deceivingly petite frame in waves that could sink ocean liners. "Well, then... there's always time for that during interrogation."

"We seem to have run into a problem."

Everyone looked at Shino, preparing for the worst but hoping for the best.

Chouji was the one who spoke up this time. "What's wrong, Shino-san? I thought we had their trail."

The bushy-haired ninja shook his head. "Yes, we did have their trail. The two chakra signatures are present, but in the surrounding area there is no sign of it whatsoever- it is as though they suddenly disappeared, leaving behind no trace at all of where they could have gone."

Sakura scowled. "So, what then? They stole back Itachi's shirt to leave us stranded without any leads and then used a powerful transportation technique to get away from the scene so they can continue on their arbitrary Akatsuki adventure of annihilation? Those fucking _assholes_."

Hinata blinked. No one said anything. Akamaru sneezed. Shino's insects crawled up his pant legs, presumably returning to their master hive to rest.

Ino eventually shrugged. "Well... they _are_ evil. That's the kind of thing that we should expect, coming from the likes of them."

"Shut up, Ino-pig. You're not helping the situation."

"I know that, billboard-brow. I'm being realistic."

"Oooooohkay," Kiba interrupted before a catfight ensued. "How about we just continue the way we were going until we reach Kumogakure. That's where the Hachibi is, right? In the Raikage?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru interjected. "But the Hachibi isn't the Raikage himself, it's his younger brother and that's gonna cause problems. Big problems. Especially since he's the Raikage's fighting partner and essentially his right hand man."

Naruto was awed. "Whoa," he said. "Does that mean I'll get to meet another jinchuuriki and be able to train with him and stuff? Cause that'd be _so _awesome!"

"Naruto!" Sakura scolded, none too gently. "Now isn't the time to start fantasizing about hanging out with a bunch of jinchuuriki, we're on an S-ranked mission to capture one of the most feared shinobi of all time!"

Naruto's excited expression became crestfallen at her harsh words. Although Hinata agreed that now was not the proper time to be thinking about unrelated training, she still felt the pinkette was being a little rude.

"Ne, Sakura-chan, maybe you should calm down a bit. I'm sure Naruto meant no harm towards the mission-"

the pinkette turned to her, emerald eyes burning with anger. "And how do you know that? With Naruto's ridiculously thick skull he's just gonna run off and do it anyways, placing all of us in danger!"

"Hey!"

Sakura and Hinata looked at Shikamaru along with everyone else.

"Everyone here needs to relax." He gave Sakura a stern and unyielding glare. "Especially you."

She opened her mouth to protest but Shikamaru cut her off before she could say anything in retaliation.

"I know this is a very important mission, the first S-ranked mission for some of us." He sent Sakura another pointed look at this statement, to which she flushed slightly in either anger or shame. "It's a big job, and it may sound impossible to complete. It will be a very difficult time for all of us, but arguing and complaining is no way to help the situation. Everyone here has been picked to go on this mission for one reason and one reason only- you are the best suited candidates for this task. We all know Hokage-sama isn't one to do things half-assed. She has assembled the best team possible that has the highest chance of success considering the circumstances and our capabilities as individuals and as a group. Have faith in yourselves and your team-mates. Without trust and faith we will all fall on the battlefield in front of Itachi and Kisame, if not beforehand. Be on your guard. Believe in your team-mates. And most of all _do not fight._ That is the worst thing that you can possibly be doing right now."

Sakura looked only slightly shamed now, staring at her ninja sandals like they were the most interesting thing in the world, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"Do I make myself clear?"

Mostly everyone nodded or uttered a verbal agreement.

Shikamaru watched Sakura closely. "Sakura." The pinkette slowly looked up and met the Nara's unyielding stare. "Do you understand?"

She hesitated for a moment and then nodded in confirmation.

"Good. Now let's move out."

Off the trail and back on the proverbial road, Hinata and her comrades continues flash-stepping through trees and such until they reached the borders of Yugakure at around noon. It was here that Shikamaru called for everyone to come to a halt.

"Just ahead is the borderline between Fire Country and Yugakure. Beyond that, we have only to pass through a small strip of Frost Country to reach our destination in Lightning Country. After that it should be about a day's travel to reach Kumogakure. I would like to reach the border of Lightning Country by nightfall. Is everyone prepared to set off once more?"

"Hai!"

"Okay then, off we go."

They trailed through Yugakure without any trouble but stayed as far away from Otogakure's borders as possible, just to be safe. Frost Country proved to be no issue whatsoever, and by sunset they had made it in to Kumogakure without a hitch.

Kumogakure proved to be much less forgiving when it came to flash-stepping through trees- the foliage here was much sparser than it was back home, but that was to be expected when taking into consideration they lived in the Hidden Leaf Village. They instead travelled stealthily in an orderly fashion over rocky terrain until they arrived in a small village only about an hour or so into Kumogakure but appeared harmless in nature- what few streets there were, were bustling with villagers who were making last-minute purchases of everyday items and foods. Some vendors were already packing up for the night, bidding good night to their friends in the process.

Shikamaru turned around and faced his team-mates. "We'll find a motel or something for the night. Tsunade provided us with immense funds for the length and troublesome qualities of this mission and the cost of sleeping on a bed instead of the forest floor will be a nice change. But don't get too used to it; we will be frugal with our expenses."

Travelling down the main street of the village Hinata noted that most of the houses looked the same; small stone houses which required actual doors instead of shoji screens like the houses back in Konoha. Each one was home to small families or elderly couples, all appearing to be satisfied with their lives. Shadows cast across the street and beyond as the sun finally submerged under the horizon and night came upon them, bringing with it a slight chill to the air that seeped through the thick lavender fluff of her coat and bit into her arms ferociously. Hinata rubbed at her arms absentmindedly as she continued searching the area with her Byakugan for any signs of danger.

"There is nothing that indicates malevolent activity in this area. We should be safe." Shikamaru nodded. He could also feel that the village they were in was a peaceful one lacking in terms of formidable auras and ruffian shinobi and thieves.

They continued to stroll down the dirt road before them until a building considerably larger in size than any of the others surrounding it came into view. It looked to be at least four stories high and there was a small mob of civilians milling around just outside its front doors. The group walked up to where multiple people stood, talking amongst themselves and looking down at the ground repeatedly. Upon closer inspection, Hinata realized they were looking at not the ground but a cat.

A fully grown midnight black cat. A male. And it was severely wounded.

Or so she thought. Stepping through the small crowd of onlookers she knelt down by the cat's side, slowly, so as not to disturb or frighten it. The animal before her watched her keenly, his sharp grey eyes staring intensely into her own and watching for any sign of evil intentions. Hinata gained the unnerving suspicion that the being before her was incredibly intelligent.

_Let's not get ridiculous,_ she chided herself as she reached out and placed a gentle hand on the wounded animal's flank. She allowed her medical chakra to slowly seep into the cat's system and began to examine the damage that had been done.

The diagnosis was in fact quite simple to conclude. There were multiple deep gashes on the animal's legs, causing a couple of tendons to be severed and rendering the cat unable to walk with the use of its back right leg. Much of its fur was matted in blood and the cat looked like he was about to kick the bucket from sheer exhaustion. It was then that Hinata made her final decision, she was going to tend to the cat until it was fully healed.

"Hinata. _What_ are you doing?" Shikamaru inquired as the indigo-haired female gently scooped up the animal in her arms. The cat wriggled around a bit, trying to get free before soon discovering he would be unable to escape of his own accord and giving up. Hinata smiled as his stubbornness. She then set her eyes upon the Nara before her, blazing with determination.

"Ne, Shikamaru, what does it look like? I am taking it upon myself to see to it that this cat is properly tended to."

Shikamaru's eyes bugged out slightly in a rare display of shock which Hinata would have found amusing under different circumstances. He quickly composed himself, however, and uttered a single word.

"No," he deadpanned.

Hinata felt an unfamiliar curl of irritation unfold in her stomach. "And why not? He will hardly affect the mission."

At the mention of a 'mission', the group of gathered civilians quickly dispersed to go about their own business or go home, and in either way avoiding the nine ninjas present.

"We don't have _time _for this," Naruto whined childishly. "It's just a cat. They're everywhere, what makes this one so special, Hinata-chan? We have to find Itachi before he finds the Raikage's brother, and the way we're travelling that's only gonna take a few days at the very most. We don't have time to turn our motel rooms into an animal hospital."

Hinata ignored the blonde's complaints and turned her attention on the pinkette that was standing near the front of the group. Sakura was a refined medic, so she should be able to understand the want to heal all injured beings, having displayed such a notion countless times in the past herself.

"And you, Sakura-chan? Where do you stand on this?" Hinata's eyes penetrated Sakura's and silently willed the pinkette to say the right thing. However, luck was not on her side.

The pink-haired kunoichi stood before her with an expression which both offered understanding of wanting to help an injured soul and the dominant knowledge of mission priority holding strong above all else when the time called for it.

"Gomenasai, Hinata-chan. This mission is one of the utmost importance and at a time like this I'm afraid I can't support your decision to shelter the cat- we have to be on guard at all times and I don't know about the others but I won't be the one to be brought down because of an animal. I also won't let soft-hearted decisions become the downfall of my team-mates and comrades and lead to further anguish for Sasuke-kun."

Hinata chose not to say anything in response to her statement and glanced over at Shikamaru and the others. Like herself they were staying silent, obviously not expecting such a reaction by the head medic of the team but acknowledging the logic in her words. Ino was frowning slightly at the back of the pinkette's head, her arms crossed over her chest. Chouji was watching the black cat in Hinata's arms with a look of _that's so cute_. Naruto was already prepared to settle n for the night; rummaging through his backpack and taking inventory of how much ramen he had left, and was completely ignoring the situation at hand.

Shikamaru was still sending Hinata a cautious look of warning. She resisted the urge to curl her lip slightly at their ridiculous mistrust of an innocent animal and attempted to quell the rising irritation in her voice as she spoke next. "What now?"

"Do you really want to distract yourself with animals on an S-ranked mission? Sakura has a point. This mission is dangerous enough as it is without having to worry about nature taking its course."

Hinata held the cat a little closer to her chest, as if she were protecting it from the Nara's words. The animal in question stiffened and then squirmed about with great vigour, trying to get itself released from her gentle clutches. Hinata merely rearranged the cat in her arms so it couldn't effectively move any of its limbs but so that its wounds remained untouched. The cat hissed slightly, almost half-heartedly, before falling silent once again.

"Ne, Shikamaru, I wouldn't have thought you to be so uncaring over the fare and well-being of others."

Shikamaru frowned, slightly offended.

Hinata nodded her head once in a brief bow of acknowledgement before raising it once again to face him off. "I understand your worries and concerns over this mission. However, I cannot stand by while anyone, animal or not, suffers. I spoke an oath to save lives wherever and whenever I could." At her last sentence Hinata sent Sakura a brief but slightly accusing glance which the pinkette caught before she slanted her eyes away, slightly guilty. She then turned her gaze back to the Nara. "Regardless of the situation at hand, I will heal this cat. It will not take long. We are in a stable, secure village which you said yourself holds no traces of malevolence. I believe out of the course of this mission, this is the safest time of all to enforce my duties as a medic to a creature other than my team-mates."

Shikamaru opened his mouth, obviously to protest, but she cut him off. "I will not have it any other way. I am doing my job just as you are doing yours; do not deny me my rights."

He sighed and consented. "Very well, then. How troublesome."

The nine ninjas trekked en masse into the motel- it was large but quaint, well lit and nicely decorated with pictures, flowers and other various knick-knacks. Hinata found herself greatly appreciating the décor which she found suited the styles of Konoha and therefore reminded her of home. There were a cluster of tables in the far corner of the bottom floor, surrounded by various table games, a poker table, a barista and a jukebox nestled against the wall which was emitting a soft and familiar tune which she remembered hearing in her younger years. An older man was mopping the floor off to her left, humming along to the tune being played.

Ino had cast a genjutsu over the cat in Hinata's arms, rendering it invisible. The cloak she was wearing, identical to everyone else, covered her completely and so nothing came to be of suspicion.

They were issued three of the largest rooms- one to be shared by the four girls, the other two to be split up among the boys and Akamaru. Shikamaru passed Hinata the key to the room she was to share with her fellow kunoichi trio and bowed her head a little in thanks.

All three rooms were on the third floor. They managed to pack themselves into the surprisingly large elevator, and precisely thirty-seven seconds later the bell dinged and the doors _whooshed_ open. The boys headed for their rooms, talking loudly and occasionally laughing along the way. Hinata pushed her key into the slot of the door located three down on the right side of the hallway and turned it, effectively unlocking it. She then turned the doorknob and let go as it opened on its own; showing the four pairs of curious eyes their accommodations for the night.

Their room was large. Before them was a sizeable sitting room, complete with a big television and an exceptionally comfortable looking sofa. To the left she could make out parts of a small but efficiently designed kitchen. Ino, who had already traversed down the hall, called out the presence of a luxurious bathroom off to the left of the hallway. Beyond that were two bedrooms holding double beds, matching bureaus and small televisions of their own.

Everyone gathered in the living room. "So... where are we all gonna sleep?" Ino asked. Tenten shrugged.

"It really doesn't matter to me," she said. "As long as I have something soft to sleep on, I'll be happy." She turned to Ino. "We could just both share a bed each. It's not like it'll be super awkward, considering we're all friends."

Sakura bit her lip. "Actually, guys... I'm not in the mood to sleep in the same room as anyone tonight." She caught Ino's look. "Not that I don't _want_ to, per se... I just, I've had a stressful day and I'm getting really worked up over Itachi-" she spit out his name- "and I just need some time to myself. Is that alright?"

"No, it's fine," Ino reassured her friend. "I guess Tenten and I can just take the other bed. It's no big deal."

Tenten frowned and turned to the indigo-haired kunoichi. "But what about you, Hinata? You must want to sleep on a bed too." Beside her, Ino cursed at her temporary lapse in remembrance and grimaced an apology to Hinata, who merely smiled.

"Truth be told, that couch in the living room looks even comfier than either of those beds. I'll be perfectly fine, don't worry about it," she smiled.

Sakura frowned, feeling a little guilty about her earlier behaviour and words to her friend. "Are you sure? If you want the bed I can sleep on the couch instead, since I'm the one who's being stubborn about this."

Hinata shook her head. "No, it's okay. You guys go sleep; I have some medical requirements to attend to." She looked down into her arms and didn't see anything- only feel a weight in her arms. Ino cursed and quickly performed a small string of seals, causing the cat to come back into plain view.

Hinata smiled again. "Arigatou, Ino-chan. The sooner I can see this cat, the sooner I can begin healing."

Ino's cheeks flushed slightly red with embarrassment as she slapped a hand to her eyes, effectively covering them from her view at Hinata's teasing words.

"Eh... you're welcome, Hinata-chan. I don't know what's gotten into me, but I've been so forgetful these past few days."

Sakura sidled up to her blonde friend and placed a slender hand on her purple clad shoulder. "Oh, is that so, Ino? If you want, I can take a look and see if something is wrong."

Ino sent the pinkette a sidelong glance. "Sakura, you do remember I'm a medic too, right? I'm just not as advanced as you or Hinata... but I think I'm skilled enough to be able to tell if there was something actually _wrong_ with me." Sakura sighed theatrically.

"Then as a medic, you know how intricate and hard to detect and diagnose some medical issues are. So sit down and let me see." Ino grumbled something unintelligible and sat down on the sofa. Sakura stood over her, a hand on her forehead and the other lingering just behind her left ear. Her hands began to glow green and for a couple of minutes all four kunoichi said nothing, intent on the situation at hand. Finally, five minutes later, Sakura pulled back, the chakra covering her hands dissipating until there was none left.

"Ino, I found the problem."

The kunoichi in question snapped her gaze up to meet that of her pink-haired friend, her expression incredulous, appreciative and a bit worried. "Really? What is it?"

Sakura sighed, her expression falling from triumphant to grave. Ino shifted in her seat, agitated, and Hinata twiddled her thumbs like she used to when she was a genin. Tenten merely stood beside her in silence. "Well, you see, the issue at hand isn't something that can be fixed. It is a permanent state of being."

Ino paled at the implication of her words. "But... Sakura. What _is it_ that's... wrong... with me."

Sakura laced her hands together in front of her and tilted her hair slightly to one side. "Oh," she said, a small smile forming on her lips. Ino's stare became slightly wary due to her change in expression. Hinata could feel something bad was about to happen. "It's quite a simple diagnosis, really." The pinkette's eyes closed, smile still in place- if anything, it grew larger. "You... are blonde."

Hinata sweatdropped.

Tenten blinked, then sighed quietly.

Ino froze for a couple of seconds as what she just said sank in. then she jumped up, her fists raised and her face contorted into an expression of absolute fury. "_What_?! What did you just say? I can't _believe_ you, _Billboard-brow_! You actually had me _worried _about my _health. _How could you _do_ that?"

Sakura merely raised her hands in front of her in a pacifying gesture as she spoke. "Ne, ne, Ino-chan, I was only joking around. You're really actually quite smart."

"Smart? I'll show you smart, you..."

Hinata tuned out of their argument and strolled to the other end of the room, the cat still in her arms. She placed him down on the floor and he lay there- tail twitching, eyes glowing, claws extending and retracting. She pulled her travel pack to her and rummaged through it for a moment before pulling out a small medic kit Sakura had bought for her for her birthday. It was fully packed and held everything she would need and more.

Next she dragged over a small, low set table and covered it in a folded and quartered small fluffy blanket she had found earlier in the bathroom. She then picked up the cat again, gently, and placed him on the blanket with his injured side facing closest to her. The cat before her lifted his head and attempted to get up. Hinata pushed him back down gently and stroked him once from head to tail.

"Please be calm, little neko. I mean no harm to you; I will only be healing your wounds. Now be still and I will commence." The cat obeyed her words and made himself comfortable on his soft blanket, not moving a muscle. Hinata began by cleaning the wounds, carefully extracting entrapped debris and disinfecting them before applying a cooling antiseptic salve. The cat seemed to calm under her touch, relaxing at the minutes ticked by. She capped a small container of salve and put it back in its proper place within her kit before rolling up her sleeves. Lavender chakra surrounded her hands and she applied it to the cat, healing his wounds until there was not even a scar to indicate injury.

To ensure for absolute certain the cat's injuries would heal completely, she pulled out a herbal cream which Sakura herself had made to promote skin health after injuries and applied it to the affected areas. She had just pulled out a roll of gauze when Tenten approached her and sat down on the opposite end of the table.

"How's he doing?" she asked, petting him briefly. Hinata smiled at the weapons master's obvious love for animals and answered briskly.

"Well, he must have gotten himself into one nasty fight... the skin all around his flank was shredded and sliced through. It was hell trying to properly mesh his skin back together in a way that wouldn't cause him discomfort in the future. I took the liberty of applying extra remedial creams and antiseptics, though. He's as good as new." She pulled free the end of the roll of gauze and began wrapping a back leg with the utmost gentleness. Tenten looked on, gaze curious and observational.

"You've really excelled, Hinata. To think you're also a medic-nin like Sakura, and just as skilled... I'm happy for you."

Hinata smiled graciously. "Arigatou, Tenten-chan. It means a lot to me to hear you say that." The cat below her huffed with irritation at being confined to his lying position for so long. "Don't worry little neko, I'm almost finished here."

"Ne, Hinata-chan... how do you feel about this mission?"

The cat's ears twitched at the sound of her voice, but he otherwise remained still. Hinata watched her friend over the table and pursed her lips slightly, pausing in her work. "What do you mean?"

Tenten hesitated before answering. "I mean... how do you think we'll manage? We're chasing after two S-class criminals; tasked with killing one and dragging the other one home against his will. He... Itachi _killed_ his entire clan, well, except for Sasuke. But look at him now, he's a complete mess. I'm actually surprised he hasn't already defected from the village in order to settle the score for himself."

Hinata frowned, fingering the gauze she held in her right hand with her left before continuing to wrap the wounds before her. "Well, I suppose the best chance we have is to follow Shikamaru's formation and hope it is effective." The cat below her turned its head and stared at Hinata, its eyes speaking of untold intelligence. She ignored him for the moment and continued talking. "S-ranked criminals... I believe nothing is completely black and white in the shinobi world. Everyone acts according to their personal convictions; what they feel to be right or wrong. The only problem is that everyone has a different idea of what _is _right and wrong. That's the only real reason why people still war against one another."

Tenten remained quiet, staring at Hinata intensely. Hinata could feel that her friend was taking in what she was saying and considering it greatly.

"As for the massacre-" the cat tensed under her hands and Hinata stroked him absentmindedly- "Many people believe his crime to be unjustifiable. What he did... it was indeed heinous and brutal."

Her friend scoffed. "Tell me about it," she muttered.

Hinata swallowed lightly and began wrapping once more. "I come from one of the biggest clans within Konoha, like Itachi. I know firsthand just how deceiving and manipulative situations can become if they are not handled properly. Even so, the clan looks out for itself first before taking the village into consideration. In a clan you are a member first and a shinobi second. That is something I was never entirely comfortable with. Take my father for example- he stripped me of my status as heiress and a Hyuuga merely because I lacked the proper outlook to train efficiently due to the fact I was always put down and ridiculed in light of my younger sister's prodigious abilities."

Tenten watched Hinata carefully, leaning forward in her eagerness to hear her friend's next words to what she was about to say. "So, what are you saying, exactly? That you believe Uchiha Itachi is an innocent man?"

Hinata didn't answer right away, cutting the length of gauze, splitting it and tying it securely. The cat, however, didn't move a muscle and remained in place, watching the Hyuuga intently. Her eyes clouded over slightly as she reached out and stroked his head a single time. Her eyes never left the cat's as she spoke. "That is not directly what I'm trying to say, but it is a very real possibility. How many times have you killed for the greater good? We all as shinobi must do so at one point or another. I love Konoha. If I detected a threat to my home, I would eliminate it before damage could be caused. We all fight to protect what we cherish most."

"You think he killed his family to save the safety of the village? Why would he do such a thing?"

Hinata shrugged. "That I cannot tell you, for I don't know myself. The third shinobi war ended around the time we were born. That means Itachi would have been only a young child, exposed to death, despair and loss. It would most certainly have been a traumatizing and life-changing experience. On top of it all, Itachi is clan heir. That means clan pressures and wills would be pressed directly upon his shoulders. Something about the massacre doesn't make sense. I only want to find out the truth behind what really happened."

Tenten nodded. "So you suspect conspiracy."

"Yes." Hinata shook her head. "I know it's a hard idea to fathom, but every village has done things or is doing things that they are not proud of. Konoha is no exception. I'm not questioning my loyalty, but it's disconcerting to think our leaders or their partners harboured ill intention towards our village."

"You do hold some valid points. But how exactly do you expect to get the answers you're looking for?"

Hinata merely smirked bitterly. "I don't know yet. Perhaps if we succeed in bringing Itachi back, we can finally find out for ourselves. But I have a feeling things wouldn't be nearly so simple. Why else would he evade our search parties for ten years and going?"

The brown-haired kunoichi shrugged. "Guilt and shame can become very strong and haunting emotions. Maybe he couldn't live with facing Sasuke knowing he killed their parents, family and friends."

"I suppose that such is the life of a shinobi. At least, in Itachi's case."

Hinata glanced over Tenten's head, where a mounted clock ticked repetitively on the wall. "Kami, it's getting very late. We should sleep while we still have the time to do so."

Tenten nodded her agreement and stood up. "Hai. Oyasumi nasai, Hinata-chan."

Hinata smiled. "Oyasumi nasai. I'll see you in the morning."

After Tenten left, Hinata picked up the cat and placed him on the couch before curling up beside him. "Little neko, you're all patched up now. I will leave you here with me to rest the night. In the morning I will remove your bandages and you can roam this village once again." She stroked his sleek head and settled down to sleep under a thick, patterned blanket.

Itachi waited until Hinata fell asleep before jumping to the floor in complete silence. Absentmindedly, he noted his leg and torso were feeling much better- the Hyuuga girl had a way with medical jutsu. He padded to the apartment door, noting it was closed and locked. Masking his chakra, he concentrated.

"_Transformation jutsu_!"

His cat form grew and stretched into that of a human, fully clothed in his trademark Akatsuki cloak which was patterned with red billowing clouds. The front door, as he could now tell, was protected in a barrage of traps- ones he could easily undo, but he would rather not waste time if there was a quicker exit. He glanced around the motel room and noticed with satisfaction that the indigo-haired female had forgotten to close the window before retiring to sleep. A foolish move on her part, but convenient for his current situation. Striding with lethal silence towards his escape, he perched briefly on the windowsill, casting a final glance around the room and allowing his eyes to linger on the admittedly beautiful kunoichi who had so tenderly seen to his wounds and healed them to perfection.

He jumped.

Landed without a sound. Double checking to make certain his chakra was masked and no trail would be left behind, Itachi ran for twenty-three minutes amongst nondescript, bland terrain before arriving at a rocky cliff which hid his partner. Strolling with catlike grace to the back of the rocky outgrowth, he entered a small cave- the end of which was illuminated with the soft orange glow of a small and smokeless fire.

Kisame looked up, noting his partner's presence with a slight grin. "Back so soon?"

Itachi sat down opposite the blue-skinned shinobi. "Evidently. _Transformation Jutsu _Technique was executed without fault and the mission was a success."

"I can see that." The ripped part of Itachi's shirt was stained with blood, but all of it was old. The skin underneath was flawless once again with the aid of what could only be medical jutsu.

The Uchiha before him merely folded his hands and rested them on his lap, leaning forward slightly and watching the flickering flames. Kisame frowned.

"You know, Uchiha," he said, wiping his large hands on the lap of his ninja pants. "This little scheme of yours took a lot of time and effort to execute."

"I am aware. However, such sacrifices are essential if you wish to gain the upper hand in battle."

Kisame rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, kid... whatever." He picked up a black pail that was sitting on the rocky ground beneath him and tossed it over the flames, where Itachi caught it swiftly.

Itachi raised an eyebrow, unamused. "What do you wish for me to do with a pail?"

Kisame grunted. "I expect you to make yourself useful and get me some water and a cleaning cloth. Samehada's still covered in your blood."

This chapter turned out to be a great deal longer than the others. I would apologize, but I believe long chapters to be a good thing. I hope you guys enjoy it;

Please review :)


	10. Interlude

This is a very short chapter, if you can call it that, but it serves as a sort of bridge between what previously happened and what is about to happen. I was going to mesh this and what I have in mind for the next chapter together, but I just don't think it would have the same effect. As the song lyrics describe, this chapter is indeed more of an interlude than anything else. The next chapter should be up soon. Please enjoy :)

"_Saints, protect her now_

_Come angels of the lord_

_Come angels of unknown"_

_-'Interlude'- My Chemical Romance_

The days and weeks blurred together into a continuous stream of flash-stepping, sleeping and packing while continuing the search for Itachi. Hinata had yet to grow weary due to intensified training with her sister and team-mates, but she could see the mission was taking its toll on some of her comrades- albeit, not in a physical way. Naruto was growing more and more tense with each day that passed by, undoubtedly anxious to finally face the soul who inflicted such torture, pain and despair unto his genin team-mate. Similarly, Sakura's face had since grown paler than usual and minute stress lines were beginning to make their debut. Her jade eyes were still sharp and focused but harboured an intent which made the pit of her stomach roll uncomfortably.

She had no doubts that Sakura wanted, more than anything, to kill the elder Uchiha.

Sakura's emotions were in turmoil. Hinata could understand that. But over the course of their mission she had come to say and act upon things that were out of her usual character. She knew the pinkette's love for Sasuke was unending and as intense as it had been in their Academy days. But as of late, it almost seemed as though she was almost acting against the proposed will of Konoha. People acted according to their own convictions. Sakura believed Itachi should repay his actions in equal fare. Hinata couldn't help but worry about her friend- which was more important to her- Konoha's safety or her own wants?

"Woof!"

Hinata glanced out the corner of her eye as she flew through the air, landing gracefully and silently on a branch before lifting off once more. Akamaru appeared to be agitated under Kiba, who was resting an assuring hand on the ninja dog's furry neck.

"What is it, boy?" Akamaru whimpered slightly and he sniffed the air, his eyes lighting up with satisfaction and then grim determination in the process. Chouji slanted a quick peek in their direction before watching ahead once again. Ino, however, was bolder.

"Have we picked up a trail?"

Kiba nodded. "Hai."

Akamaru whimpered. His nose was twitching furiously and soon low growls emitted from the depths of his throat.

"They are close by."

An uncanny atmosphere blanketed itself over the traversing horde of ninjas at the Inuzuka's words- a mute yet mutual feeling of fear, worry, determination, and the unanimous feeling that if any of them were not to make it out alive, their own were about to take on a drastic turn. This was a life-changing moment hanging before them all, just waiting to be approached.

"_Caw_!"

Hinata jerked her head up and peered into the canopy surrounding her and spied a very familiar black crow perched elegantly on a branch fifty meters or so ahead. Its head was turned slightly and she could easily spy the sickeningly familiar crimson and black orb staring through her soul.

"_Byakugan_!"

Chakra patterns now becoming evident to her, Hinata scanned the bird before her and came to the same conclusion as she had that fateful night in the forest the outskirts of Fire Country- this crow was a summon, not part of a genjutsu. If the crow had been following them all this time like she suspected then that meant the summoner must have been close the entire course of their journey as well in order to gain intel on a regular basis and keep immaculate tabs of the situation at hand. Hinata felt a fleeting wave of self disappointment wash over her for underestimating what had been happening- this was, after all, Uchiha Itachi they were dealing with, a rogue ninja of ten years and an individual of remarkable intelligence and skill. Nothing would be made easy for them from this point on.

As if on cue, the midday sun which had since that morning been shining brightly slipped ominously behind a rather large patch of clouds. Hinata's surroundings became shaded and she noticed a slight frown marring the visage of Shikamaru.

Of course. Without light, Shikamaru would be unable to perform his clan's jutsu.

With each meter they travelled, not a single sound was heard but everyone was beginning to feel an invisible pressure upon them, becoming stronger each moment- chakra signatures making themselves known, or just too big to be completely cloaked. A clearing made itself visible slightly to the east. Hinata relayed this information to Shikamaru, who then directed the group towards that area. They did not drop from the trees, however. That would be a stupid thing to do, leaving them open and vulnerable to attack. They instead fanned out around the clearing's perimeter to face what they could feel moving in their direction.

They were being searched out?

Hinata tensed. Alongside her, her team-mates were reacting similarly- bending down slightly, arms out and poised for attack with a suitable weapon in hand. Sakura was tugging on her leather gloves with a little more force then necessary, staring hard into the forest before her.

A branch snapped in the distance.

Forewarning of their advancement, as if they needed it. The Uchiha and Hoshigaki were probably toying with them, luring out their anticipation so that they will react improperly with the urge to strike before the proper time. Hinata was indeed anticipating what was to come, but she would be damned if she let anything get to her head over it. She glanced over at Shikamaru, then Shino, then Ino, who all met her gaze briefly before nodding imperceptibly- they head a level head. Finally she glanced at Sakura. The pinkette was gritting her teeth in frustration and her fists were clenched into tight uncurlable fists. That old feeling of uncertainty made its way back to her as she carefully observed her medic friend. This would be the time that would decide first and foremost where her loyalties lay.

Glancing back quickly, she noticed a few of her other comrades watching Sakura as well- Chouji with a worried lip, Tenten with a penetrating stare and Kiba emotionlessly.

"Don't fuck this up for us because of lover boy back home."

Sakura's eyes narrowed into an intense glare once they settled on the Inuzuka. "What the hell is _your_ problem? I'd be the last one to fuck _anything_ up, especially when it's in relation to Sasuke-"

"Sakura."

She and Kiba halted their bickering immediately and turned to watch the Nara, who was uncharacteristically stern. He sent the Inuzuka a brief but disapproving glance before averting his attention to the pinkette before him.

"Remember where your loyalties lie. Your village needs you. I will not tolerate any undue activities on your part for the full extension of this mission. You have caused somewhat of a ruckus and I will not hesitate to send you back home if you prove to be unstable and lead to become the cause of a possible mission failure. Sasuke is a big boy, he can take care of himself. He doesn't need you the way you need him."

Hinata cringed inwardly at the harshness of his last words, but found him to be correct. Sasuke never seemed to appreciate or even tolerate any of Sakura's attentions. He preferred to live in an environment free of clingy behaviour and thrived in quiet peace instead of constant invitations to dinner or otherwise. She watched as Sakura's face flushed first with anger and insult before shifting to one of long suppressed guilt and sorrow pulled back to the surface. Even Ino was regarding her with a sympathetic face.

She was silent for a moment before lifting her chin slightly and looking at Shikamaru. "I will not betray Konoha."

"Can you betray Sasuke? It is your mission to do so."

The Nara then turned his full attention back to the blank scene before them. Sakura's face ripped apart into torn expressions of duty and guilt. She opened her mouth to answer but something cut her off.

A large figure emerged into the clearing. He was obviously male, and his great height and blue skin gave him away as Hoshigaki Kisame. He peered into the trees before him and soon laid eyes on Ino, who gripped her kunai tighter, but otherwise remained immobile under his gaze. He reached up and fingered the handle to what could only be Samehada, strapped securely to his back via a thick leather strap which reached at a horizontal angle over his chest and behind his right shoulder. He grinned maliciously, showing off each and every one of his pointed, shark-like teeth.

"Well, well, blondie. I found you. Whatcha gonna do about it?"

Ino curled a lip in disgust as Kisame attained a firmer hold of his weapon. "Don's wanna talk about it? I see how it is. You're just scared. Have a damn good right to be, too. I wouldn't want to mess with me either if I was just a measly Konoha shinobi." He turned around. "Dammit, you're so slow these days. Hurry the fuck up already. I'm excited to show off my tricks of the trade."

A smaller figure moved out from the trees, his strides measured and confident. A red and black cloak which marked him as a member of Akatsuki rippled around his legs, blown by the wind. Hinata raised her eyes and met long raven bangs which framed a pale neck, surrounded by a simple chain. His mouth consisted of full lips, marked on each side by a slight skin crease which crawled its way up to the inner corners of his eyes. Hinata didn't look that far up though, wanting to preserve her sanity and not be caught in one of his notorious genjutsus. From what she could see, the rest of his hair was tied back into a low ponytail and a katana peeked out from the confines of the cloak and its sheath.

Uchiha Itachi had arrived.

I want to graciously thank everyone and anyone who reviewed, commented, followed or favourited this story. It really means a lot to me to see what people think of my writing and the plot and it makes up a huge chunk of the motivation which spurs me on to keep writing. Feel free to comment at any time ^-^


	11. Space Bound

"_Nobody knows me I'm cold_

_Walked down this road all alone_

_It's no one's fault but my own_

_It's the path I've chosen to go."_

_-'Space Bound'- Eminem_

"Follow formation!"

Hinata jumped out of the trees, landing in front of Itachi at a distance of roughly fourty meters with her Byakugan still blazing. Ino did the same, landing behind him to the left, and Shikamaru dropped on his other side, boxing him in a triangle-like formation.

Sakura glared at Itachi hatefully before going off to land beside Kisame. Her fists were clenched tighter than ever before and the stance she proceeded to take on was a no-nonsense sort. Chouji landed off to his right, looking a little intimidated by being in such close proximity but soon wiping the look off his face in favour for one that screamed determination. Hinata had always had a soft spot for the Akimichi- he was kind, gentle and loving- just like her- and he never wished to see people get hurt if they could avoid it- just like her. But this was an exception to the cause. When Kiba and Akamaru bounded from the treetops and skidded to a halt to the left on the taller missing-nin, Hinata knew that things were going to get really heated up and really soon.

She could hear Naruto making a fuss behind them; whining and complaining and even trying to jump out behind them and help out. Tenten cussed numerous insults at him and then all she could hear was the _thunk, thunk, thunk _of what she assumed to be three kunais thrown into the tree's base.

Surely Tenten wouldn't have tried disabled him like _that..._ right?

Hinata resisted the urge to look up and make sure her friend and roommate was okay, but she didn't have to anyways- Naruto's squeals of indignation had intensified tenfold, and Tenten's voice carried a smug edge when she spoke.

"That should keep him in place for a while," Hinata heard the older kunoichi say to Shino. Silence followed- typical- and Hinata focused her attention back on the scene before them.

She spotted Shikamaru assuming an offensive stance, his eyes filled with determination and intent. His spiky ponytail barely budged in the breeze, but Hinata could tell that the Nara was thinking of other ways to beat this duo behind the scenes. He was worried their formation would not be able to hold up against two older and seasoned ninjas who undoubtedly had much more fighting experience during the time of their defection than all nine of them put together.

"Uchiha Itachi, we have been sent on a retrieval mission to bring you back to Konoha. I advise you not to resist or we will be forced to bring you down ourselves."

Itachi slowly turned to face Shikamaru. His eyes were as expressionless as they were in his bingo book picture; he just seemed to be completely uninterested in the situation as a whole.

"I do not wish to engage in battle." Deceptively, his right arm reached into his cloak and the sound of scraping metal was heard. Surely enough, his hand emerged expertly grasping the handle to his exquisitely sharpened katana. He held it out so that the sharpened point was fixed in on the dead center of the Nara. "However, you leave me with no choice. I provided you with multiple opportunities to return to your village with your lives intact. Unfortunately, today will be your last."

Kisame snorted derisively. "What the fuck are you talking about, not wanting to fight with them? I haven't had a decent battle in quite some time. Perhaps these three will be worthy enough to test my limits... I doubt it." His small shark-like eyes scanned his chosen opponents before settling in on Sakura. "Heya, pinkie. How's life treating you?"

Sakura responded by forming hand seals to what Hinata knew to be a particularly nasty genjutsu. The battle had begun.

Hinata tensed and watched the Uchiha in front of her very closely for any signs of movement. He, however, remained immobile.

Ino sighed from a little ways off. Hinata glanced at her to see that the blonde was scowling, probably still miffed from Kisame's earlier greeting. She pulled out a shiruken from one of the many pouches sitting along her belt and whipped it with precision towards his jugular.

Itachi blocked it.

A metallic ping from the encounter between shuriken and katana rang oddly in Hinata's ears, but she ignored it and glanced at Shikamaru. They met gazes and merely nodded, reaching into their own pouches for multiple projectiles. At the same time, all three of them threw a barrage of weapons at the Uchiha, granting that he would be unable to dodge all of them without moving.

He leapt gracefully into the air, landing not even a foot from his previous position after doing a flip. So it seemed they were back to square one.

Ino rushed forward with a kunai in hand and went to swipe at him. Itachi held up his blade and easily blocked her attack, pushing on his sword so that she was forced to jump back to avoid her kunai slipping and herself becoming impaled. She skidded backwards, growling with irritation. "Come _on, _Uchiha. I don't have all damn day. Fucking _do_ something already!"

Itachi's facial features remained impassive; however he slid his katana back into its sheath with excruciating slowness. "Very well."

A clone shot forth from his original body, coming to a halt thirty feet away. The clone ran at Shikamaru, its tanto wielded and ready for battle. Shikamaru turned to Ino and began forming hand seals, moving so fast that they were nothing but a mere blur. Ino barely had time to register what was happening before he executed his technique.

"Ino-chan!" Hinata screamed her name, hoping to be able to get to her in time so that she could jump to safety. However it seemed that she was too late. Itachi had cast a strong genjutsu on the blonde. And it seemed he was so proficient he didn't even have to be focused on the target for it to take effect. Ino fell to her knees, holding her head, tears streaming down her face as she screamed bloody murder.

He faced Hinata. He then disappeared.

Hinata blanched at the implications. She formed seals for _Transportation Jutsu_ not a second before Itachi materialized behind her, his katana sweeping a lethal cut straight through where her midsection used to be. Rematerializing twenty or so feet away, she leapt into the air as Itachi rushed forward, katana at the ready. Facing each other off at mid distance, Itachi formed a new set of seals.

"_Katon: Great Fireball Technique_!"

Hinata's eyes widened at the sudden enormous ball of fire flying straight at her- it was so much bigger than any she had ever seen Sasuke execute during either missions or training. She ran out of the way, just missing the fireball that was now eating a giant crater into the ground but found that the very edge of her coat was singed. Intense heat blasted against her face and she backed up a few steps more so that she could concentrate properly. It didn't seem like she was even going to get a chance to breathe during this battle- she wondered idly if she would even make it out alive. She pulled another kunai out her pouch and turned around just in time to see Itachi not even a foot away.

Acting on her instincts, she raised her kunai just as his katana came bearing down on her. He was pushing down on her smaller frame with much strength, so much more than she was accustomed to, and Hinata found herself struggling not to fall under the pressure. Thinking fast, she suddenly darted to the side and delivered a roundhouse kick to his back with much more speed than she had in earlier years, thanks to all her training with Hanabi and her team-mates. Itachi flew backwards a few meters before rolling to his back and coughing up blood. Hinata's heart twisted oddly at the sight.

Itachi _poofed_ out of existence.

Hinata gasped in disbelief- all of this battle, Ino's genjutsu, all of it, was fabricated by clones? Itachi's skill level was obviously underestimated, even by the Hokage.

Before she could do anything to prepare herself, a giant murder of crows swarmed all around her in an obsidian flurry of feathers and rustling, some brushing over her face, arms and legs. She raised her arms to cover her face in a vain attempt to ward off the sudden flock of birds.

"_Caw! Caw, caw, caw!_"

When the amount of birds dissipated, Hinata watched with a sort of fascinated awe as they all meshed together to form Uchiha Itachi. Seconds later he stood before her, sharingan eyes spinning.

"Hyuuga-san, your skills are above par."

Hinata said nothing but merely raised her weapon once more.

"However, this battle grows lengthy. I will now finish you."

He rushed forwards and gripped her left wrist in an ironclad grip, pulling her close to himself in such a way that their chests brushed. Startled greatly by his close proximity, she made a fatal mistake-

She looked into his crimson eyes.

Her coloured world descended into one of monochromatic black, red and white. Itachi stood before her, katana in hand. Hinata herself was shackled to a cross, arms spread apart and her feet tied together at the ankles in a way that made it absolutely impossible for her to move. Blood flowed below her like an ocean, waves lapping up against the cross's base and leaving behind a pink tinge which seeped into the wood, staining it forever with her pain and suffering.

"_In the world of Tsukuyomi, I control space and time..."_

_Itachi lifted his katana, pointed it to Hinata's abdomen and struck. She could feel the cold metal blade sink deep into her flesh, undoubtedly severing some major organs in the process. She didn't have to be a medic to know such a thing. Pain ravaged her body like a wildfire. She screamed out in pain and struggled in a futile manner, wishing more than anything that she had remembered everyone's warnings about never looking into his eyes. Because of her foolishness she probably cost herself her life._

"_and even the mass of objects."_

_Another clone appeared beside Itachi and stabbed her where her kidneys lay. Hinata felt unconsciousness tugging at her, trying to pull her away from this mess. The pain intensified tenfold. Pain was making it almost impossible for her to think, a deadly consequence._

"_Starting now, I will stab you with a sword for seventy-two hours."_

_Itachi pulled his katana out of her flesh, only to stab it in again nearby. His clones mimicked his actions, pushing Hinata closer and closer to the edge of falling into unconsciousness each time. A katana was pulled out of her; but Hinata was too far gone to know or even care which clone it belonged to. Her head lolled to the side as her eyes closed, then opened a moment later- only to be greeted with the sight of herself shackled to a cross, two clones of Itachi Uchiha standing before her with katanas held, tips pointing to a red sky complete with an inky black moon which hid behind equally dark clouds. Hinata turned her head once more, blinking in confusion. She looked ahead and was met with Itachi and a clone, both of whom were regarding her emotionlessly._

_One of them raised their sword higher to the sky, causing it to jangle slightly in this eerily silent world before pointing it at her._

"_In the world of Tsukuyomi..." Both clones stabbed her, causing her to yell in pain. "I control space and time..." She was stabbed again, twice in succession. Hinata's eyes bulged out of her head, blood capillaries bursting with all the stress and pressure building up within her. "and even the mass of objects." _

_Through the pain, Hinata knew that this was an illusionary technique- not reality in the least. But how could she keep it from hurting so much? How could she possibly escape from this genjutsu alive?_

_Being in Itachi's genjutsu, he could read her thoughts like they were his own. One of the clones stabbed her just below her navel. "You should not underestimate this just because it's an illusion." Hinata watched from three feet away as she was stabbed by another clone off to her right. "This pain is not fake. This pain does not differ from one created via an illusion, though."_

_Hinata groaned with pain again as yet another blade sunk into her flesh. "Nani... why are you telling me this?"_

_Itachi stabbed her again, his voice thoughtfully blasé. "How long will you be able to withstand this?" all the crosses with her shackled to them disappeared and were replaced by thousands of more clones. They surrounded her from every angle, each and every one of them holding identical swords. "Seventy-nine hours, fifty-nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds left."_

_Hinata couldn't move, but her mind was blanked with surprise. Only... only one second had passed? Only one second from all that? "What do you want from me, Uchiha-san?"_

_Another clone stabbed her. She blanked the pain and focused on the man standing before her. "As a jounin, I expect you would be bright enough to answer that question for yourself." Hinata said nothing. It was all she could do now to breathe properly and keep herself from passing out again. He removed the sword. "Your fate was sealed the moment you accepted the mission to capture me. I became a missing-nin for my own reasons. Since defection Konoha should not be meddling in my personal business."_

_Hinata sucked in a ragged breath. "I beg to differ, Uchiha-san." Both clones watched her intently. "You are likely the most powerful ninja in the shinobi world. Regardless of the massacre or your personal intentions, it is the duty of each village to clean up any mess they make. Therefore, I highly doubt Konoha will cease sending out retrieval teams until we succeed in bringing you home or you perish."_

_Itachi raised his weapon once more. "Then I will be certain to send a crow with news of my departure from this world."_

_Hinata shook her head weakly. "No... you don't understand. Do you?" Katanas embedded themselves within her once more. Hinata noticed from behind the barrier of agony that he seemed to have stabbed her with slightly more force then necessary._

_He watched her with level eyes. "To what are you referring?"_

_Hinata drew in a harsh breath and coughed slightly from the aftermath. Blood dribbled down her chin in a thin stream and dripped onto the front of her lavender coat. "The massacre."_

_His eyes gained a dark tint. "What of it?_

_Hinata choked on some blood, coughing it up and then spitting it out. She watched blankly as it hit the red waves below her and mixed in with what must be the shed blood of everyone else who was ever caught in this technique. "Why did you do it?"_

_She didn't notice because she wasn't looking at him in that instant, but Itachi froze at her blunt wording. He did not wish for anyone to know of his past, of why he did what he did._

"_I was testing my limits." Hinata snorted from the cross. Disbelief was painted over her features, something Itachi wondered about._

"_That is not true."_

_Itachi frowned imperceptibly at her remark. Why was she being so stubborn over something that was not even her business in the first place? Such a strange girl she was. "What makes you say such a thing?"_

_Hinata would have rolled her eyes if she was not on death's door. "The answer to that is simple. A shinobi of your calibre would not have to resort to the murder of kin to test his strength." She swallowed down some more blood that threatened to surface before continuing. "You were already known to be far stronger and intelligent than any other Konoha ninja. Strength did not even matter to you. Apparently you were quite attached to Konoha before something fell through the floor." Another sword stabbed through her with brute force. Hinata cringed and gasped for air._

"_From what sources did you gain this information?"_

_She somehow managed not to accidentally spit blood in his face. "My ways of gaining information are none of your concern."_

_His eyes narrowed- yes, she was definitely getting under his skin. Hinata knew she should stop before she was murdered, but she just couldn't stop herself. "I am making it my concern. Do not test me, kunoichi."_

_Hinata decided it would be in her best interest to perhaps give the ninja before her some truthful form of answer. "I am well-versed with your genin team-mates, Uchiha-san. Such a topic was bound to come up eventually."_

_This kunoichi was friends with Hana and Shironai? How interesting._

_Power pulsed through Hinata's mind and she cringed in discomfort. When she opened her eyes again the red sky above was swirling into some sort of vortex._

Hinata shook her head, feeling out of sorts. Her abdomen throbbed heavily with each and every breath she sucked in. remembering she was in fact a medic, she placed her hands over her stomach and pumped chakra to her abdominal area, careful to measure just how much chakra she used. She finished but moments later to Shikamaru's quiet grunts of strain. Hinata looked up and noticed with a great amount of shock that the Nara had managed to trap Itachi in his _Kage Nui no Jutsu _to bind him into place. Naruto had just jumped to the forest floor. Hinata was about to yell at him to go back into the trees when he grabbed for Ino and picked her up bridal style, leaping back to foliage to keep her body out of harm's way.

"Hinata!" Shikamaru yelled her name, instantly getting her attention. "Hurry up and disable his chakra. Ino and I are kind of having a hard time keeping Uchiha in place." True to his words, Itachi was periodically jerking against Shikamaru's shadow bonds and Ino's mind control technique she had to hurry.

Setting out to complete her task, Hinata used her Juken to block off every single one of the Uchiha's chakra pathways. After she finished with that, he could still move of his own free will, just not use any chakra-requiring techniques. But since he was still under Shikamaru's jutsu she decided to place chakra blockers behind both of Itachi's eyes- of course, being extremely, extremely careful in the process. She herself possessed a clan kekkei genkai, after all- she would want to be able to trust anyone healing her to ensure her eye dojutsu would be preserved.

"I have disabled all chakra pathways and the effective use of his kekkei genkai," she told Shikamaru. He nodded his approval.

"Excellent work, Hinata." He then looked at Itachi. "Ino, you can release your technique now and bind him. Kami knows that was troublesome." Hinata watched with some amusement as Itachi answered with an enthusiastic "Hai!" before blinking as Ino returned to her body. From the trees everyone could hear screeching as Ino indignantly smacked Naruto over the head for touching her in such an inappropriate manner. Naruto's protests of protecting her were just as loud.

Kisame was about to give out from chakra exhaustion. Chouji was still in a rampage because apparently Kisame had called him a fatso... Hinata deduced he was a dead man. Surely enough, he was struck by a barrage of Chouji's attacks paired with Kiba and Akamaru's _Fang Over Fang Technique_. When Kisame was knocked to the ground, Sakura ran forth.

"Shannaro!"

She punched him in the face, effectively crushing his skull and killing him. Quickly she leaned over his body and felt for a pulse. After a couple of minutes and no signs of life, she stood up and took a step back, promptly stomping down on his ribcage with a chakra-packed foot; causing sickening wet snaps to be heard. She then kicked him into a large bush to hide his corpse.

Silence ensued.

Hinata blinked at the sudden end to their battles. She supposed luck was on their side after all. Perhaps Sakura's rage was a good thing in this case.

When she focused her attention back to Itachi, Hinata noted that Ino was currently binding his hands behind his back so he would be unable to form any seals. Even though his chakra was blocked, he was still Uchiha Itachi. No risks could afford to be taken.

Shikamaru wiped bloody hands on his pants before turning to the rest of the group. "We will have to travel back to Konoha by foot. Good job, guys. Mission complete."

That was my first attempt at writing a battle-ish scene... how did I do? S:


	12. Monster

"_I'm only human_

_I've got a skeleton in me_

_But I'm not the villain_

_Despite what you're always preaching"_

_-'Monster'- Paramore_

Travelling on foot from Kumogakure to Konoha with a prisoner in tow was no easy feat. The days were long, tiring and nights were tense with worry that Itachi would find ways to escape.

On this night, after a week of travel, they were just outside of Fire Country's borders. Shikamaru stopped walking and motioned with his fingers, signalling it was time to set up camp once more. Sakura went off to collect wood and start a fire, Ino and Naruto left the vicinity to pick up some extra food. The others set up camp.

"Shikamaru, I will go and scan the perimeter and set traps. Will you be joining me again?" the Nara nodded and adjusted the kunai pouch which rested on the back of his hip unconsciously.

"Hai. We'll just follow the plan. Scouting new areas is always such a drag."

With a nod Hinata leapt off to the surrounding trees, activating her Byakugan in the process. She scanned her half of the typical perimeter then dispatched six clones to set up traps.

She was about to return to camp when one of her clones exploded.

Hinata paused. What the hell? As the clone's memories came flowing back to her, she took to the path her clone had taken and came upon the scene with surprise. Before here was a small explosion site, complete with a small crater in the ground. Bits and pieces of what appeared to be clay were spewed haphazardly around the surrounding area. There was only one person she was aware of who was capable of clay bombs, but surely Deidara wouldn't be following them as well? But either way, she wouldn't make a second mistake of not reporting suspicious activities when she saw them.

With her Byakugan she could see Shikamaru was just finishing up his half of the work load. Racing through the trees for a full three minutes, she dropped from the trees with a sudden rustle and skidded to a halt five feet from where he was standing. The Nara before her whirled around, kunai in hand. When he saw it was only Hinata, he lowered his weapon and sighed.

"Hinata," he stated lazily, "you should know better than to drop in on another ninja like a bat out of hell."

Hinata swallowed; her breathing slightly heavier than normal. "I know," she said. "Gomen ne. But I have found something I believe you should take a look at."

He raised a brow curiously. "Oh? How troublesome. What is it?"

"One of my clones exploded. Literally."

The lazy tint vanished from Shikamaru's eyes and he stood up straighter, his stance all business. They both leaped into the nearest tree. "You take the lead." Hinata nodded and set off to their destination.

Upon arrival at the explosion site, Shikamaru cursed and rubbed at his forehead, as though irritated with the situation at hand. Hinata watched him curiously for a moment before turning back to the scene before her.

"I believe it was Deidara who did this." Shikamaru merely nodded his assent. "However, whether he dropped this bomb or placed it beforehand is unclear."

Shikamaru pinched the bridge of his nose briefly before crossing his arms over his chest. "He must have set a land mine. I would like to switch locations for the night, but it's too late to begin travelling now, and considering the far distance from camp, he must have only wanted to instigate." He stared thoughtfully for a minute before speaking again. "I think we don't have a choice but to stay here for the night. Ill just place three people on shift at a time; if anything suspicious arises then the rest are to be awakened."

"That's all we can do."

They travelled back to camp side by side in the growing darkness. As they approached the soft orange glow of the campfire's flame reached their eyes. They descended into camp to see that fish was once again being cooked on sticks and some other natural resource had been harvested. Itachi was bound securely to a nearby tree, looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else than where he was. In a way, Hinata felt sorry for him. The soul of the man sitting before her appeared... crushed, for a lack of better words. His eyes were dull and listless; holding no emotions whatsoever, save for boredom and neutrality. Hinata couldn't begin to fathom what he must have gone through in order to become this way.

Ino checked the tenderness of the roasting fish before turning to Shino. "Do you have that bingo book on you, by any chance? There are a couple of things I should mark down."

Itachi blinked. Naruto smiled and raised a hand into the air enthusiastically. "Can I do it? I wanna be the one to draw all over shark-face's picture. He was such an asshole, and I want to get revenge."

Ino placed a hand on her hip. "And just how is doodling over a dead shinobi's picture considered revenge?" she brushed her bangs away from her eyes, smirking in amusement. "You're so immature. Besides, you'll probably find a way to do it wrong. I can handle it."

Naruto puffed up. "But, I saved your sorry ass from getting killed in the middle of the battlefield. _I think_ you owe me something." Ino blanched at his words and smacked him. He fell backwards, rocking back and forth and holding his head, crouched over in pain. "You pervert!"

"I didn't mean it like that!" he whined. "What the hell, Ino? I was talking about the book, for Kami's sake."

In the midst of their bickering, Shino managed to discreetly pull the bingo book from his travel pack. Silently the pages flipped, until he came to one of the book's first pages. He quickly marked something down before resuming his perusal. About halfway through he stopped once again and adjusted his hand, preparing to write something else.

"Kisame Hoshigaki is not dead."

Sakura was the first to react. She stomped up to him, fists clenched and shaking. "What the fuck are you talking about? Stop lying! I'm a medic. I saw for myself that he was dead. The crushed skull and ribcage should be another... _dead _giveaway."

He turned his head to face her, eyes blank but honest. Sakura flinched away slightly before regaining her courage and meeting his eyes. "Kisame is one of the strongest Akatsuki members with the largest chakra reserve. He is capable of manipulating his necessary life functions in order to confuse and fool his enemy. Another Akatsuki member with whom you may be familiar- Kakuzu- is also quite skilled in the art of stitching severed and mutilated body parts back together. Both have endured much worse and survived. You have been outdone. You are also a fool to believe any member of the Akatsuki would be so easily captured."

Sakura's face morphed into one of feral fury as she growled. "We caught you, didn't we? Now shut _up_!"

Shikamaru walked up behind the pinkette and placed a warning hand on her left shoulder. "Sakura. That's enough." The pinkette stood silently under his hand, body trembling ever so slightly with suppressed rage and irritation. She jerked her shoulder forwards so his hand fell off.

"I'm fine," she gritted out. Sidestepping around the speculative Nara, she stalked off into a patch of nearby trees to vent out her frustration. Hinata's suspicions were proven correct when the sound of a loud crash met her ears followed by a particularly large tree barrelling past the forest's edge before flying over the edge of a nearby cliff, landing in the river below with a loud _splash_.

Everyone ignored the scene before them, by now used to Sakura's temper. Itachi, however, blinked with mild curiosity in the pinkette's general direction before attuning his attention to the group of ninjas before him. His eyes settled on Hinata for a second longer than the rest, dark eyes unreadable, making her palms sweat and her heart jump painfully.

Was that good or bad?

Hinata didn't have the time to ponder the meaning of her bodily reactions because at that moment, Ino distracted her thoughts with a well-placed call.

"Fish is ready!"

Like clockwork, everyone- particularly the males- gathered round the fire like a horde of ravenous piranhas. Ino rolled her eyes at their behaviour. Meanwhile, Sakura reluctantly trudged over to the scene and placed herself cross-legged between Chouji and Tenten. Each grabbed a fish and began to eat. As Hinata quietly picked at her food, she couldn't help but notice how desolate the elder Uchiha looked. It tugged on her heartstrings to see anyone like that- alone, bound, and probably hungry. He was also quite pale, even for an Uchiha, an indicator that he was perhaps ill... although he had never shown any signs of sickness the entire day they had travelled. Even if Uchiha Itachi was a missing nin- one she had suspicions about, nevertheless- he was still a human being, a living creature, and Hinata felt he deserved to be treated as an equal. There was much, much more to him than met the eye.

Twenty minutes or so later everyone had finished eating their meal for the night. This left a stick of fish and a small amount of berries for Itachi.

"Time to feed the captive!" Ino declared. Kiba gave the busty blonde a queer look before moving over to where the Uchiha sat on the cold, unforgiving ground, motionless. He made a move to untie his bonds before pausing.

"Uchiha, your hands will be untied so you can stuff your face. Don't try anything funny, or I'll have Sakura punt your ass back to the hellhole you belong in." Itachi said nothing in response but bowed his head slightly in an act of acknowledgement. Upon seeing this, Kiba quickly untied his restraints and Ino placed the food in his hands. He picked up the stick containing cooked fish and looked up at the rest of the group surrounding him- Kiba, Ino, Chouji, Shino and Tenten. "I know you're probably used to eating in solitude and all that crap, but that's not gonna happen here. If we so much as take our eyes off you for a second, there's the chance you'll try to escape, which is something we can't have happening." After watching the Inuzuka for a moment longer Itachi began to eat his food, albeit slowly. He seemed to be hesitating over something.

"As a former, _loyal_ Konoha nin, surely you are aware of the importance of every mission being a success." He merely nodded once at Shino's words. "Then be so kind as to give us the benefit of the doubt. Do as you are asked and everything will go smoothly."

The Uchiha's face was once more hidden from view, but Hinata was almost as shocked as everyone else when she heard him speak of his own will. "Hai." Shino nodded imperceptibly.

"Good."

A long while Itachi managed to finish his food. Seeing that none of his body guards were making any move to get him something to drink, Hinata walked over and kneeled in front of him with her canteen in hand. She reached out with her left arm, offering her canteen if he wanted it. After a long pause on his end, Itachi slowly raised his head to meet her gaze, his own eyes filled with something that could only be distinguished as blankness. Trying to urge the Uchiha onwards like a mother nudging her child to do something, she shook the canteen a bit before holding it out further to him, her eyes telling him to take it. He did, hesitantly, taking a few sips before wordlessly returning it back to her hand. She could practically hear the silent exclamation and question marks lingering over the heads of each and every one of her fellow comrades.

"...Hinata?" Kiba queried. "What... what are you _doing_?" he gestured towards her canteen and then Itachi, his face full of jumbled up emotions and his eyes leaking confusion. "He's a wanted criminal. A wanted S-rank criminal, for kami's sake. _Uchiha Itachi. _You can't be going around like this, catering to his needs like some sorta servant or housemaid. He could kill you!"

Hinata barely refrained from rolling her eyes, not even sparing her outspoken team-mate as she remained in her kneeling position on the forest floor. "You believe he would kill me?" she sent Itachi a fleeting glance before finally looking up to meet Kiba's irritated eyes. "I'm quite sure such an excellent shinobi would know when to cut their losses and go with the flow."

Her team-mate lost his cool- or what he had left of it- and threw his hands up into the air, exasperated at her words. "Are you being serious right now? Hinata, he killed his entire clan. _Murdered_ them. With weapons. And more than likely with some really nasty genjutsu. Personally, I wouldn't put it past such a filthy convict to pull another act like that and retreat once more. He knowingly sent his brother on a path of revenge that's eating him alive; anyone can see it in his eyes. His only goal is to kill this guy here." He kicked Itachi's boot hard to exaggerate his point.

"Kiba!" Hinata couldn't believe some of the things coming out of her beloved team-mate's mouth. It was utterly _ridiculous_, all the things he was insinuating. Even if he did have a point- Itachi did; in fact, exterminate his clan- he didn't consider the likely case of foul play somewhere between the lines. Even if it seemed like she was reading too much into things, in Hinata's very concise and insightful opinion, Itachi was not a man capable of unworthy murder. His exterior may say one thing, but his heart may very well be saying the complete opposite.

The male Inuzuka standing before her wrinkled his nose in disgust and briefly shook his head as though to clear his head from her inconceivable words. Beside him, Akamaru copied his actions and whined at her in despair. "Look at the facts. Itachi is the last Uchiha. 'Nuff said."

Hinata smirked ever so slightly, her eyes closing briefly in amusement. "Ne, Kiba-kun, you're forgetting about Sasuke."

He snorted derisively. "He doesn't have anything to do with anything. The only reason he's still alive is because, like the rest of us, he was lucky enough to be held back for a few hours of impromptu training with Iruka-sensei. Otherwise, Sasuke would be rotting away six feet under like the rest of his friggen' family."

An almost incoherent sound gained the attention of both Hinata and her fellow genin team-mate almost immediately after words were spoken. Itachi was not moving, not pulling at his restraints, not even looking at them. But the rage, the anger, the frustration and... the sadness that emanated from his body in huge, roiling waves like a tsunami was impossible to ignore. Hinata stared at the top of Itachi's head in awed confusion before quickly glancing over at Kiba who remained stunned by the Uchiha's sudden change in demeanour.

"You know nothing of the past, or my reasons for doing what I did. What is done is done. You have no right to speak of my past so blithely. I would advise you to keep silent over matters you know nothing of."

Moving so fast Hinata couldn't keep track, Kiba lunged forward and grabbed the front of Itachi's black and red patterned Akatsuki cloak in his right fist, dragging his upper half towards himself until they were almost nose to nose and Itachi's body was bent at what appeared to be an extremely uncomfortable angle. They both ignored Hinata's muffled squeak of horrified surprise and hatefully stared each other down- Kiba's slitted eyes were gleaming with loathing and Itachi's coal black eyes morphed into bottomless, freezing pits with no room for remorse or mercy.

Lips curled back over pointed fangs in a deliberate display of a threat. "What's exactly your problem, Uchiha? You think you're a fucking hero for killing an entire clan and fleeing from the village like the coward you are? You think you won't be hanged once we get back to Konoha and you'll be reinstated as a loyal village nin? I've got a news flash for you; buddy- shit doesn't work that way where I'm from. Your list of criminal charges is _miles _long. You don't stand a chance in hell."

Itachi managed to jerk away from the Inuzuka and set his mouth into a thin line. He regarded Kiba silently, his eyes speaking all the cold and threatening words he didn't care to say aloud. Kiba met his stare head on, not even flinching- something Hinata secretly applauded him for, despite the dire situation. She could see the Uchiha's entire body was tense. He leaned away from Kiba for a moment before finally speaking.

"You know nothing."

Kiba's nostrils began to flare with deeper intakes of breath as his rage rapidly increased. His hands fisted even tighter in Itachi's cloak as he shook him once, harshly, before releasing his right fist and pulling it back behind his head. "I've had just about enough of you, Uchiha. It's getting late; let me help you get to sleep."

As his arm swung forward with much speed, Hinata made a split-second decision and hit a vital point in the Inuzuka's arm, rendering it paralyzed and limp. She then caught Kiba's arm and pulled it behind his back, ignoring her team-mate's startled protests of indignation.

"Kiba-kun, whatever your issue with Uchiha-san is, you must not let it affect your judgement. Konoha law regarding the accused and trialed remains as such- punishment may not be given out until a verdict has been reached by the Hokage and the jury, in face of both the accused and the village- at which point punishment will be doled out accordingly, _without_ the aid of outside forces, including certain vengeful individuals."

Kiba struggled in vain against his female team-mate's unyielding grip upon his twisted arm. "I'm not getting revenge for anything, Hinata," he growled out. "I'm just putting this bastard in his place."

Hinata loosened her grip on his arm slightly, pulling him with her as she stood up before letting go and turning the spiky-haired teenager around to face her. "Kiba-kun, there's no need for that. The council will deal with him as they see fit."

### ### ###

That was what worried Itachi.

As he watched the former Hyuuga heiress lead away her angsty team-mate, her words still resounded endlessly within his agonized mind. The council was responsible for the Uchiha massacre. They brought forth the idea and managed to sway the Hokage into seeing things from their point of view. The council was the reason why Itachi lived every day loathing his own very existence.

He hadn't wanted to do it. Who in their right frame of mind would? He loved every member of his family; he cherished them to no end. Things became hard when he became a double agent, stemming between Konoha and the Uchiha clan, sharing information from each side to their opposition, but it was something that had to be done. The Uchiha had wished to overthrow the village and take charge for themselves. What had made matters a hundred times worse was the fact that the head of this heinous plan was none other than his own father.

Itachi had been raised in the midst of war. He had watched as many people he loved fell to the ground, never to stand again. He had watched the world be painted in cruel shades of red, decorated with scattered remains of limbs and tattered, blood-soaked clothing. When it had all finally come to an end, Itachi had formed the mindset of a pacifist. He never wanted to see war ever again- it was so unbelievably horrid. The only good thing that had come out of the massacre was Sasuke's safety within the village's borders. But his plan had failed- his foolish little brother had yet to attempt to take his life. Even if the fanged shinobi claimed Sasuke was on a warpath of revenge, why had he not come to him? He was eighteen, surely strong enough to be able to successfully defeat him in his current state. Sasuke had always clung to the past and to memories. Was it that all he needed was the motivation?

### ### ###

It was late at night when the fire Sakura built started dying into a pit of smoking embers below the cloudy night sky. Due to their current location, single watch shifts were enforced and Hinata had dutifully volunteered to pull the first watch of the night. Traps had been set by herself and Shikamaru earlier in the evening and now she was the only one of the group who was conscious. Currently she was sitting on a conveniently situated log near the fire and was watching it absentmindedly, her senses honed on her surroundings and the certain Uchiha who was bound to a tree ten feet away.

Itachi was asleep as well. Hinata couldn't help but to feel as least slightly bad for the Uchiha- his position had to be so uncomfortable. However, his past dictated no need to require a more comfortable sleep setting, given his history. Even if Hinata's kind and gentle nature disapproved of his setup, there was nothing she could do about it. She sighed. Sometimes she almost wished she had a harder heart and firmer foot. Both things would make her life so much easier; but then she wouldn't be the same without them, would she?

Ragged breathing began niggling at her senses, alerting Hinata further. Strangely, the sound was emanating from the direction of Uchiha Itachi. Her eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement as she turned to the roped shinobi, noting with a medic's eye that his chest was rising and falling in a manner faster than it should have been, indicating that he was either hyperventilating or ill.

"Uchiha-san?"

He did not respond to her tentative call, but the ragged breathing did not cease. In fact, it grew more harsh, and soon he began to cough, waking up with a gasp. Hinata stood from her perch on the log when his coughing grew more intense. This time, through the hand that was covering his mouth streamed rivulets of crimson which could only be identified as blood. Throwing away her caution, Hinata rushed over to Itachi's side and placed chakra-covered hands to his chest. The man under her hands ignored her presence, still occupied with attempting to clear his lungs so he could properly breathe. She concentrated on performing a scan of his chest area and choked on her breath at what she found. His condition was much worse than she had originally thought.

Itachi's coughing ceased steadily over the few minutes Hinata stayed kneeling dutifully by his side, quickly healing the bare minimum of the intense respiratory infection that had overtaken his lungs. For such a harsh case of the disease, it must have been brewing for years.

"Uchiha-san, you have developed an extreme respiratory illness which has severely damaged your lungs. I have healed the worst of the internal bleeding and numbed the area temporarily to provide you with some relief. When we arrive in Konoha I will have you enlisted in the ICU. From there Sakura-san will tend to your wounds, as I am not up to her calibre of abilities in the medical field."

"Do not worry yourself over it." Calmly, Itachi took hold of Hinata's chakra-laden hands and slowly pulled them off his chest. She mentally noted how warm they were- and smooth, too. His fingers were lightly calloused from years of work with weapons and combat, but felt surprisingly pleasant against her hands. He was watching her the entire time, no emotions discernible. Even so, Hinata's heart skipped a beat and she could feel her cheeks warming with a blush. Mortified at her body's response to him she pulled her hands from his and used them to cover her face, rubbing at her cheeks as a way to will the unnecessary colouring away. She could still feel Itachi's eyes on her, weighing like an anvil. "Hyuuga-san."

Timidly, Hinata dropped her hands into her lap and met his eyes. Itachi's eyes were as dark as ever, but as she watched him closely she thought she caught a brief glimpse of something like amusement. _What could there possibly be for him to be amused over?_

"Thank you."

Her eyes widened momentarily before returning to normal size and her face heated up once again with that all-too familiar blush. Finding herself unable to speak, she merely nodded shyly and made to stand up. She nearly jumped when Sakura's voice floated over the clearing.

"Hinata? Is that you? Are you okay?"

Hinata quickly straightened herself up and glanced down at Itachi, seeing that he was already laying back against the tree once more, eyes closed and breathing peaceful. That one little fact gave Hinata a sense of relief. At least Itachi would sleep well tonight, which was more than she could ever have hoped for, given his condition.

"U-uh, yes, Sa-Sakura-chan. I was just checking up on Uchiha-san."

She noted how the pinkette's eyes took on a slightly suspicious glint before blinking and washing away any such implications. "Alright, if you're sure. Just wake me or any of us up if you need us. We're always here for you."

"Hai."

Sakura rolled over within her sleeping bag so her back was facing the ex-heiress. Not minutes later her breathing evened out in a telltale sign of deepening slumber. Hinata found herself to be quite surprised that Sakura was the only one to be awoken by the exchange between herself and Itachi- at least half of the ninjas present would have woken up from a lesser sound. But the past few days had been quite taxing; therefore Hinata deduced everyone must have become quite exhausted from the toll their travels had wreaked upon them.

It was time for Hinata to switch shifts with Shino. She pulled her arms above her head in a long stretch, causing the hem of her lavender jacket to pull a couple of inches above the hemline of her navy knee-length ninja pants. Letting her arms drop once more, Hinata zipped up her coat all the way and, out of habit and manners, turned in Itachi's direction and smiled softly. "Good night, Itachi-san."

She was almost by Shino's side and about to rouse the bug-user from his slumber when she heard Itachi's low voice float towards her, its tone almost soft.

"Arigatou. Good night, Hyuuga-san."

### ### ###

so, what do you think of the story development so far? I'm honestly just writing as I go; I just have a general idea of where I want the story to end up.

Comments and reviews are love!


	13. Boston

"_In the light of the sun, is there anyone? Oh it has begun...  
Oh dear you look so lost, eyes are red and tears are shed  
This world you must've crossed..."_

_-'Boston'- Augustana_

Hinata fell into a deep and peaceful slumber after she, Chouji and Tenten traded shifts with Shino, Naruto and Ino. The hours passed her by in blissful silence up until the crack of dawn when birds started chirping and the forest around them came to life. Her team-mates mimicked their actions, rousing each other in order to prepare for the journey ahead.

Hinata sighed to herself as she secured the ties to her sleeping roll and took in her surroundings. She deduced it would be no more than a day's journey at a brisk pace that would bring them within Konoha's walls once again. She smiled lightly at the prospect and packed it within her bag, standing up. She glanced across the spread of busybodies surrounding her and instead focused her attention on the missing ninja who she recently discovered was in fact quite ill. He appeared completely unaffected by what was going on around him, but that didn't surprise Hinata in the least-she knew instinctively that he, like all Uchiha, were very unlikely to be swayed to give a physical display of emotion by anything or anyone.

She stood correct.

Hinata watched on in veiled amusement as Itachi blandly watched Ino punch Naruto in the face, sending him flying a good ten feet or so.

"What the _fuck,_ you baka?! I told you not to sleep beside me. I told you! And yet you did it anyways! Kami, you're so _stupid_! Anyways, and now I wake up and you have your damn _arm_ around my _waist!_ How did you even move there? You were like, five feet away! Pervert! You're no better than your pervy senseis, no wonder you've become how you are!"

Her blonde friend didn't say anything at first- he lay absolutely still, face-first in the dirt clearing. His left arm twitched a bit before he rolled his head to the side so he could look at the blonde female before him and sent a weak smile her way.

"Ne, Ino-chan..." he gulped as he saw Ino's face turn red and her fist ball. His own face paled appropriately and he scrambled up awkwardly. "I-I mean, san! Ino-san! Please don't go all Hulk on me like Sakura always does, it hurts soooo much," he whined childishly. "It's just..." he was silent for a moment as he obviously racked his mind for an excuse before grinning innocently. "I was cold?"

Hinata could have almost sworn she saw smoke emanating from Ino's ears. "_Narutoooooo!" _Naruto _eeped_ in horror and barely managed to avoid the strong swing courtesy of Ino's right fist. "You idiot! Don't even bother trying to make up excuses; I know they're all lies! You haven't changed a bit since the Academy!"

Shino appeared next to Hinata, standing between her and Shikamaru. She glanced his way and saw that multiple beetles were exiting from behind his ears down to his sleeves and feet, something he usually only did when he was scouting for problems further up their route. "Shikamaru-san, Hinata. We should take advantage of the early morning and commence travel once more. Something unsettling is being carried with the wind."

Tilting his head to give the Aburame a peculiar glance, Shikamaru frowned. "I never took you as an individual who was familiar with ESP."

"It is not ESP I speak of." From behind his cloaked figure, Akamaru whined slightly as a heavy breeze picked up, his shiny black nose twitching wildly. "It is instinct. Akamaru feels it as well. Shinobi are to be fine tuned to their surroundings and shifts in atmosphere. I believe we are to run into trouble."

Hinata knew shinobi were perceptive, knowing when danger was near. She could feel it herself- an intangible line of humming tense anticipation running through the air and connecting directly to her heart. She couldn't shake the feeling something _bad_ was going to happen. As for what that was however, couldn't be answered. Not by herself, anyways- had they not just managed to capture the best shinobi in history? One with renowned instincts skills and intelligence? If any of them were to be able to pinpoint the disturbance's cause, it would be him.

Without so much as conscious intent, Hinata's head tilted to the left before her eyes settled on their captive. The man in question was sitting in the same stiff, cross-legged position as last night. His head was tilted low so that the bangs of his hair covered the majority of his face. She remembered how Sakura always spoke of the young Sasuke Uchiha and complained about his infuriating ability to keep from showing any emotions, way back when they had only been recently assigned their genin teams. Hinata remembered her comrade's despair until one time a few months later when she broached the topic of the raven-haired genius.

"_Ne, Hinata! Hinata-chan! I found it!"_

_A young Sakura ran forwards, long pink strands of hair trailing behind her and swaying in the breeze like tendrils of silk ribbon. Hinata, who was seated quietly on a swing on the outskirts of the Academy's small playground, blushed darkly and ducked her head to hide her face from view when a few heads turned her way at the pinkette's loud exclamation. She reduced her swinging motions to a gentle to-and-fro and waited patiently as her friend caught up to her location._

"_S-Sa-kura-chan!" _

_The other female beamed brightly at the Hyuga heiress before plopping herself down on an adjacent swing that remained unoccupied. She started wiggling back and forth, causing the swing to mobilize itself awkwardly in a sideways fashion. It soon reversed its direction and twisted the chains multiple times before slowing down. Sakura giggled and threw back her head to warm her face in the sun, smiling contentedly with closed eyes before opening them a moment later. Her jade green eyes were positively sparkling with happiness._

"_Hinata! I know why Sasuke-kun doesn't react to anything!"_

_She frowned slightly as a gust of wind blew past, ruffling her short cut and flinging the longer strands into her face. Her hands however remained gripping the chains to her swing as she regarded her friend with curiosity and a tint of wonder. "Nani? What is it?" She had always thought of Sasuke-san as emotionally reclusive- which was more than normal when one took into consideration the events which he had gone through a mere few years before. She didn't blame him for being the way he was, but why was it such a big deal to her friend to know why or how he reacted to things?_

"_Well," Sakura pursed her lips slightly before shaking her bubblegum pink strands behind her shoulder, the other hand still steadying herself on her perch. "I guess I should say I found out how he does show emotion. Remember how I told you he was like a rock? Even though he's still suuuuuuper cute and handsome and perfect..." she trailed off with a light blush adorning itself on her cheeks before she got back on track and blinked a couple of times to clear her head. "Anyways! We were all at training ground three when of course Sasuke-kun and Naruto started arguing again like always." She rolled her eyes briefly before settling them on Hinata as she continued her tale._

"_So obviously Naruto just has to come out with something really stupid, right? So I was like, 'Naruto, shut up! You can't just say things about his family without knowing anything about it!' And his eyes widened and he started babbling away about how he didn't mean what he said and that it just came out without him meaning it to. And that's when I saw it- Sasuke's hand tightened into a fist! And then I looked at his face to see what he was thinking- and he was glaring. Glaring! I mean, I know he does that all the time and it's nothing new, but it's the first time I ever noticed him physically react to anything we've said. I've also realized how when he talks when he's mad, his voice goes all creepy like he's going to kill someone. I feel like such a loser for not realizing it earlier."_

_Hinata was definitely frowning at her friend's unholy description of her own crush, but managed to keep her thoughts to herself. She believed in Naruto. That was all he needed to know. Even if he didn't, she'd never stop. When Sakura got to the part about Sasuke's reactions however, her frown turned into an expression of mulling something over. _

"_But Sakura-chan... Sasuke-san i-is always angry in some way. I- I'm quite sure you realized that lo-long before you became team-mates... what makes it so different this time?"_

_Sakura's expression faded from elated to melancholic as she lifted her feet slightly. The chains to her swing untangled themselves, causing her to spin around in a pink whir for a few seconds before she came to a stop, this time facing the same direction as herself. She said nothing for quite some time. Her eyes were clouded over with sadness and her petite hands clenched at her swing's chains in a sense of helpless desperation. When she finally looked up it was to stare unseeingly into the horizon stretching before the young pair of friends, her voice quivering yet her mouth relaying the words with emotionless steel. _

"_Because, this time, I looked. I paid attention for the first time since first laying eyes on him. Before now I was always chasing after him blindly and hoping- no, wishing- that he would fall madly in love with me and maybe even ask me out on a date." A sardonic smile took hold of her lips as she shifted her eyes to meet Hinata's pearlescent ones. "Dumb, right?" her eyes shifted to focus in front of her once again, her shoulders rising and falling heavily as she let out a long sigh. Jade eyes spoke of the kind of exhaustion that accompanied weathering and loss of hope, and it broke Hinata's heart to see such an expression on such a young face. "And to think I only realized this now... right when I've also realized that Sasuke-kun is haunted by demons that only he can see. Demons that terrorize him in the night and follow him during the day. And I've tried." A renegade tear slipped down Sakura's left cheek as she closed her eyes tightly, her voice taking on some emotion- depression, anguish and fear. "I still try so hard to make him see that I'm here for him- even if it's just for support. As much as I want it, we don't have to be together like... that. We can still be friends, team-mates. That's what's most important to me- that we all stay together as a team with Kakashi-sensei and become strong as one and as three."_

_Hinata could relate to her friend's need to stick close to her team-mates and hold on to their bonds no matter what. She did so herself._

"_But now I'm starting to see that he's gone to a place where even Naruto can't reach him. And it scares the hell out of me."_

Hinata knew Itachi was well aware of the fact he was being watched, and by whom. Even with the possibility of their eyes meeting, she still did not look away. Was Itachi haunted by the very same demons who pushed Sasuke to the breaking point? Was that what had caused him to kill his family in cold blood on a dark and cold night?

_No._

She could not place where her instincts were stemming from, even after minutes of rummaging around within her mind to find the root source. But she knew there was much, much more to Uchiha Itachi than what met the eye. And she'd be damned if she ever died without unravelling one of Konoha's largest suspicious mysteries of all time, especially when the key component to the puzzle was sitting barely twenty feet away. She _would _find the answers and she _would_ make it right.

"Time to head out!"

Shikamaru's call for order broke Hinata out of her short lived reverie. She shook her head minutely to clear her muddled thoughts and tuned her attention to where said shinobi was unbinding Itachi. All the males from their group were guarding Itachi as he moved swiftly into a standing position with catlike grace. Hinata could tell the Uchiha felt demoted on some level; his shoulders were taut with unleashed tension and his chin was held high with a form of arrogance and pride that she pinned instantly to Sasuke's own persona. They were brothers indeed.

_But, _her mind chanted, _this brother certainly has more poise; and superior physical attractiveness to boot._

Naruto, Kiba, Sakura and Tenten fanned out in the first wave, flash-stepping to the trees and scouting the path ahead in order to ensure its safety so that a distraction could not be made for the travelling hostage to create a diversion and escape. Shikamaru, Chouji and Shino made up the second wave, travelling at a chakra-induced pace across the forest floor and serving as potential backup. Hinata travelled on foot alongside Chouji so she could maintain knowledge of the status of his chakra and pathways and have the Akimichi's help if he lashed out in an escape attempt.

The first couple hours of travel went smoothly. No imminent danger was reported; Itachi remained silent at all times and made no attempts on anyone's lives. Hinata was just beginning to relax when a cold brush of chakra touched lightly on her senses.

"Nani?" Naruto merely muttered to himself from far ahead, but with shinobi hearing Hinata could very easily pick up what he said. "I know that chakra... it can't be!" Her head snapped to attention immediately, eyes scanning every millimetre of terrain before her with her Byakugan. Just then she heard Naruto's loud yell into the vastness before them.

"_Sasuke!"_

Hinata's eyes widened with shock and disbelief. This signature she felt; it was Sasuke's? What the hell did he think he's _doing?_ If he left regardless of being under surveillance, that could only mean he had battled with his guards and escaped. He was now to be classified as a missing-nin, regardless of his intent.

With a heavy heart she watched through her kekkei genkai as Sakura stumbled in stride and almost fell from her great height. Her chakra pattern was going all over the place, spiking up and out in some places and dipping sharply in others. The pinkette gasped and shook her head as though trying to clear it. She breathed in deeply for a few minutes before gasping in what seemed to be pain.

"Naruto..." one word hung in the air, holding no meaning but at the same time saying so much.

_A well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech._

"I know." The words were grim and blunt, straight to the point. Her blonde friend's shoulders were tensed greatly and his stride was stiffer than it should have been.Hinata wondered idly how they would fare during the confrontation that was sure to come.

### ### ###

Hinata-san and the others didn't know, but Itachi's face was grave with knowledge of what was to come. What had his foolish little brother done now? The life of a missing-nin was not something to look forward to and seek out. After all, he was one. He would know.

### ### ###

A shape in the distance quickly took on the form of a raven-haired man wearing his typical shady shinobi garb as he rapidly closed in. The only noticeable difference, as Sakura once told her, was in the young Uchiha's eyes. Not only were they spinning promises of torturous genjutsu, they were emitting anger, hatred... and bloodlust.

Hinata knew instinctively that things were not going to go well at all.

### ### ###

What the fuck was the teme _thinking? _Was he really an idiot after all? Naruto couldn't for the life of him believe what he was seeing.

_Are my eyes deceiving me?_

Naruto's eyes squeezed closed in anguish and despair before opening once again, now shining with intent and determination and hints of the kyuubi embedded deep within. His right arm flew out, encompassing the world behind himself in a show of fierce protection.

"Sasuke! From this point on, you will go no farther!"

The stoic young Uchiha standing before him merely blinked and turned his head to look at his best friend. Black spiked bobbed in the wind but his stance was as proper and impersonal as ever.

### ### ###

"Who said I intend to travel beyond this point?"

Hinata watched as her blonde comrade's eyes narrowed dangerously at the emotionless words falling of Sasuke's tongue. The tension floating about in the air could be cut with a knife.

"Teme, are you _retarded_? You just ran away from Konoha, marking yourself as a _traitor._ T-R-A-I-T-O-R. Don't you know what that is?"

Sasuke scoffed. "Obviously. Dobe. I'm not an imbecile."

### ### ###

It was at times like this that Itachi begged to differ.

### ### ###

Naruto huffed indignantly, a hand of his hip like a posing tween. His eyes closed briefly. "What else could you have come for, Sasuke? Everything you need is in the village." At the sound of Sasuke's dark chuckle his eyes snapped open again, this time carefully calculating the meaning of the other male's reaction. Sasuke stepped closer to Naruto so that they were barely a foot apart.

"You see, Naruto... that is where you are wrong." He leaned in closer in faux intimacy, now whispering lightly in Naruto's ear. "There is still something left I must finish." In the next second he disappeared. Naruto blinked rapidly a couple of times to process what had just happened before whirling around in a 180 to see where he had gone.

At that precise moment Hinata felt a very subtle shift in the air. Within the next moment Sasuke appeared before her, standing but two feet away and facing off with his elder brother who remained impassive, his hands linked together in front by chakra-draining cuffs and completely devoid of both chakra and emotion. Hinata's perception picked up on the way his right hand twitched towards the hilt of his finely sharpened katana which lay raised behind his right shoulder and within very easy grasping distance.

"And the subject is standing right before my eyes."

In the next nanosecond sunlight glinted off the tip of Sasuke's sword. Reacting impulsively and without any thought Hinata's body expertly twisted with incredible speed in a perfectly executed roundhouse kick which connected the heel of her foot with the base of Sasuke's sternum. The impact sent the younger Uchiha backwards and down to the ground. Dust billowed around his fallen form and Hinata could feel the silent intensity of Itachi's probing eyes upon her small body.

"Hinata-chan!"

"Whoa, way to go, Hinata! Kick some ass!"

"Sasuke-kun!"

"...Well done."

Hinata tried to ignore all the comments surrounding her and watched intently as Sasuke slowly rose from the ground with his head bowed forward. Everyone who was talking quietened almost immediately. All attention was on them, and for the first time Hinata wasn't blushing.

Sasuke leaned his head back, eyes sharingan-bright and watching her in an almost leisurely fashion. "Well, well, if it isn't Hinata. It seems I've underestimated your skill."

She said nothing but simply remained in a Juken stance, her own eyes pulsing with the Byakugan. She did not wish to egg him on with ideas of a battle, but it was her mission to make sure Itachi arrived in Konoha, preferably alive. If however that meant she had to duel with the younger Uchiha, then so be it.

He stepped forward until they were only a couple of feet apart. Hinata told herself it was just her imagination when she thought she felt the other Uchiha tense up ever so slightly beside her. Her eyes never strayed from Sasuke's, although wary- and within good reason.

"I see you've finally decided to pull it together. Do tell me, what was your motivation?"

Hinata's pearlescent eyes narrowed at the possible implications of his statement. If Sasuke was attempting to bring down her guard so he could create an opening to attack Itachi, it would not happen. She wouldn't allow it.

"Sasuke-san. The reason for my shift in training regimes does not concern you."

He watched her with eyes like a wolf, the predator cornering its prey. "I never said I was concerned. I am merely... curious."

"Curiosity is what killed the cat, proverbially speaking." Unbeknownst to Hinata, Itachi's face revealed the most peculiar expression for but a moment before reverting back to its previous bland personality.

Sasuke merely smirked- something that Hinata found oddly infuriating. "Satisfaction brought it back."

She glared at him, expressing all her annoyance and irritation. "Uchiha-san, my personal business is my own affair. Please keep your thoughts and questions to yourself."

He _tsked_, then teleported so he was directly behind her. The unfamiliar sensation of cold steel presented itself to the pale and delicate skin of her throat, pressing in lightly and denting the skin. It split slightly and a thin ribbon of blood escaped. Hinata's eyes hardened. "Now, Hina-chan, why would I ever want to do that?"

"You tell me."

Hinata felt silk brush the side of her face as Sasuke looked to his right at a trio of new arrivals which Hinata recognized as the three ANBU operatives which Tsunade-sama had summoned in order to guard and essentially babysit Sasuke while the rest of his year team-mates went off to search for his elder rogue brother. The only female of the group- the one with extensively long dark purple hair and a cat mask- touched on the hilt of one of her bladed weapons before speaking.

"Release Hyuga Hinata." The girl herself heard the smile in Sasuke's voice as he spoke in sickly sweet tones.

"What if I don't want to?"

"Then..." a katana slid forth, released from its sheath. The metallic sound hung in the air for multiple seconds before fading away into silence. A small smile formed on her lipstick-covered lips as she slowly rose from her crouched position between Sai and Yamato and stepped forth into the midday sun. "We play."

Another smirk unfurled at the edge of Sasuke's mouth at her proposal. "I would hate to disappoint one so eager to die."

### ### ###

Okay. So. I know it's been a long time (a few weeks?) since I last updated, and the shorter chapter isn't all that soothing. But over the last couple days I've regained hold of my drive and motivation to write. It kind of comes and goes in waves and droughts. I'd also like to write longer chapters but if I'm not on a roll then I just feel bad for taking so damn long to update. So here you go.

Review? :]


	14. It Can't Be Over

"_Paint a picture crashes to the ground_

_The colours seem to fade  
When the other part to rearrange  
Is staring at your eyes  
You tried to deny, you pass me by  
In a black and white cold night  
'Cause I need your bright light, it makes me feel alive"_

_-'It Can't Be Over' –Melody Fall_

_### ### ###_

Tension hung in the air, coming to a pique not a moment before the two shinobi ran forward. Sasuke moved like a feline- quick, smooth and cut to the chase. The purple-haired ANBU member countered his move with a swift uppercut of her own sword, blocking his strike with ease before taking a hold of her other weapon and slicing it in a diagonal fashion across his torso.

_Poof!_

As the smoke cleared, Hinata's eyes widened as she took note of a shadowed figure standing behind the defending woman. Apparently just becoming aware of the imminent danger to herself, she tensed an instant before the Uchiha behind her attacked with a fistful of _Chidori_, tucking forward into a triple somersault. On her landing she leaped forward towards a nearby tree and touched down upon it with a chakra-laden foot, launching herself back to where he stood placidly, blades at the ready. Through her ANBU mask, Hinata saw murderous intent gleaming.

"Your tyranny ends here, Uchiha!"

One moment, Hinata felt the presence of their captor standing beside her in a silent and entirely unimpressed manner. The next, his presence had disappeared from her side and relocated to make itself known directly in front of Sasuke. In his hand was a gleaming kunai. Byakugan activated, Hinata glanced down at her own weapons holster and noted with a curse upon her lips that a kunai was missing from her stock. He held it above him so that the ANBU's attack glanced off his weapon harmlessly. Not taking any time to recover, he spun with socking agility to the left in a full circle and landed his right foot against the masked nin's stomach. She was sent flying backwards through the air, crashing into a rather large tree before wavering, gravity pulling her form towards the earth unforgivingly. Once she landed, she did not move.

The other ANBU who was with them- Tenzou- took a half step towards his fallen comrade's form. "Neko-san!" the younger male watched the scene unfolding before him with no interest whatsoever; instead keeping is eyes on the elder Uchiha who stood fearlessly before his brother's now trembling form.

"You will not engage me." Itachi's onyx eyes darted from Sai's blasé expression to his other male comrade, to their fallen partner and back again, eyes lingering just a moment too long to exaggerate what would happen if they disobeyed his wish. "This is a battle between my foolish little brother and myself. Do not interfere."

Out the corner of her eye, Hinata noted Sakura's form rushing towards Yugao's fallen and badly scathed body. Seeing that the pink-haired mednin was already pumping her chakra and healing wounds, Hinata averted her attention to the quickly escalating situation going on between the two Uchiha brothers.

"Why are you here?" Sasuke demanded in harsh tones. His eyes were crimson pools of fury, the three black tomoe within their depths spinning wildly with the urge to maim and cause irreversible psychological pain. Deciding to completely ignore his question, Itachi merely stood before him, hands lying immobile by his side. If Hinata didn't know any better, she would have said the elder Uchiha was _glaring _at Sasuke with disappointment. But that would be ridiculous, right?

"Foolish little brother. Why are _you _here?"

Sasuke scowled deeply and scoffed. "Why the hell do you think? Because I came to get revenge. For me and for the rest of the clan."

Everything became eerily silent as the attention of every ninja in the vicinity, including Sakura and her newly-roused patient, was locked on to the two Uchiha's exchange. At length, Itachi's eyes darkened and he regarded Sasuke with a colder stare.

"I take it you have yet to speak with Danzo Shimura." At the mention of his leader, Sai's head turned so fast that Hinata heard a crack at the motion. He stared at Itachi intensely, his hand slowly but surely moving towards his scrolls and ink. Sasuke merely glared harder at him and turned his katana over in his hands, causing the last vestiges of sunlight to glint off its shining blade.

"Don't shift your blame to someone else... _aniki_. What you did was your choice."

Itachi sighed and closed his eyes momentarily, and nodded infinitesimally in agreement. When they opened again they were still dark, but held the barest hints of melancholy. "You are correct, Sasuke. But keep in mind that everything is not as it seems. The shinobi world consists only of betrayal, deceit and lies."

Tomoe spun faster. "Save your bullshit speeches for someone who gives a fuck." He peeled back the wristband on his right arm and made a quick string of seals which were too fast for Hinata to decipher. A large amount of shiruken emerged from the seal, flying towards Itachi with deadly accuracy. "I don't care what happened. You killed my family, and for that you will pay with your life in retribution."

A meagre kunai proved to be a weapon of the utmost efficiency when in the hands of a certain Uchiha prodigy. Each and every weapon was effortlessly evaded or deflected. The sound of metal clanging against metal was all that filled the air for multiple seconds before Sasuke's seal exhausted its keep of weapons. He stood before his enemy with eyes filled to the brim and overflowing with anger and hatred, his younger form trembling in miniscule increments with the rage that had been building up inside of him for years. Itachi stood twenty meters south, a hand resting almost leisurely upon the hilt of his bladed weapon and his eyes gazing emotionlessly at him.

Hinata couldn't help but notice how the slight breeze ruffled the older Uchiha's hair, causing it to sway back and forth lightly as a tiny smirk found itself on his lips. She also took note of Sasuke's tightly clenched fist- as though he also realized the irony of the situation: his brother and nature were working against him, mocking him and laughing at his reaction.

"Will there ever come a time when your foolishness ceases?" Sasuke reached into his weapons pouch and pulled out a kunai laced with an explosive tag. Leaping backwards, he launched it at Itachi, aiming for the ground right in front of his feet. In the next second a grand explosion rocked the earth, strong enough to rival one of Sakura's chakra-filled punches. Hinata and the others of her squad were forced to jump to the treetops to avoid the blast. Byakugan activated, no sign of Itachi was to be found as the smoke started to dissipate.

Seeing no sign of his brother, Sasuke allowed himself to smirk- Hinata could see the very first vestiges starting to form upon his fair features. The movement, however, was cut short when a kunai whistled through the air, aiming straight for the center of Sasuke's back- an attack that would be extreme if it landed a hit. Sasuke, being an elite shinobi, easily took note of the oncoming attack and performed a perfectly executed backflip. The flying kunai's point barely grazed the point of his chin at it continued forwards before embedding itself in a tree thirty-seven meters away.

He snarled and whirled around. His sharingan was long since activated, the tomoe spinning madly as he scoured every millimetre of the forest around them. "Show yourself!"

A kick to the middle of his back was the answer to his command. Sasuke flew forward a few feet before landing sprawled out in the dirt. Chest heaving with anger, he stood up with undeniable grace and raised his right hand to form a seal. Following it up with three others, his right hand began to emit a blue light, crackling with life. A rather large portion of his chakra was gathering in his hand.

"_Chidori Senbon_!"

His hand swept back over his left shoulder then swung back in a wide arc; a thousand senbon of lightning flying towards his elder brother with astonishing. The air vibrated with electricity, and it was all Hinata could do just to sit and stare at the scene unfolding in front of her.

_Itachi Uchiha... you may be a prodigy, but without access to your chakra reserves, there's no possible way you can avoid that technique._

Oh, how wrong she was.

Itachi was standing beside the tree which was embedded with his- her- stray kunai. After Sasuke released his senbon, he reached up to a lower sturdy branch and made use of his upper body strength to flip himself up and over it. He landed on top of the branch he had just grabbed and swung up to another higher up, crouching on top of it just as the projectiles struck his hiding spot. The tree in which he was residing was being pummelled mercilessly but none of them flew high enough to strike him. For good measure, he landed so the rubber soled of his ninja boots were the only things on his body that were in contact with the tree- it was electrified for the moment, but Itachi remained completely unharmed.

A petty scowl adorned Sasuke's face as he strode towards his brother's safety net. "What a pity. Running doesn't suit you, Itachi. That's more like something Sakura would do... it's just annoying."

Hinata was keen enough to sense the spike of shock that followed from Sakura's general direction, followed by a roiling bout of anger. "Bastard," she hissed. Even Naruto appeared ticked off by his comment, growling quietly.

Itachi watched Sasuke like a hawk watches its prey- intent, unyielding, and ever so slightly amused. "Now, now, foolish little brother...is that any way to treat your team-mate?" as he spoke his eyes grew darker until his stare was penetrating. "You should be watching out for your friends, not treating them as you would a parasite."

_Kakashi observed the three students before him- the first genin team he had deemed worthy of passing. The first genin team who executed any semblance of teamwork. The first genin team with which he could relate. _

_He saw within himself the same prodigious capabilities, arrogance and determination to be strong which the young Uchiha Sasuke had. Like his late team-mate Uchiha Obito, Naruto Uzumaki had a bright outlook of the world, and vowed to protect everyone he loved. His goal to become Hokage only strengthened his resolve, the likes of which Kakashi knew he would never be able to possess. Haruno Sakura, like Rin, held a crush on the silent one of the team and her chakra control was nothing short of astounding. He could foresee a medical career in her future._

_He had made many mistakes in his younger days, mistakes which cost the lives of his team-mates. It was something he would never forgive himself for. However, something he could do in order to help preserve the lives of his students was to teach them the fundamentals; ones that would keep them alive and protecting each other until the end._

_Kakashi closed his ever-present orange book and tucked it away safely in his kunai pouch, his single onyx eyes carefully watching the young trio in front of him without emotion. "There will come a time when your team-mate is in mortal danger. There will come a time when your determination to become stronger will overcome you. There will probably even come a time when you feel like you are superior to your team-mates or feel as though you are far too weak to accomplish your goals."_

_Naruto and Sakura watched their sensei with all their attention. Sasuke stood off to the side a few feet away, his arms crossed and his eyes closed. Indeed, they were much alike._

"_Perseverance is key. Do not give up on yourself. Do not give up on your friends... and do not give up on your team." His eye hardened as he stared them down with intensity. Sakura shifted slightly under the pressure but held eye contact. The other two were silent but he knew he held their attention as well._

"_It is true that those who break the rules are scum. But there is only one thing worse- those who abandon their team-mates are even worse than scum."_

The emotion in Sasuke's eyes changed to something indecipherable as he raised his katana once more. "They hinder me when it comes down to my revenge. They are my team-mates, but my quest to bring you down requires for me to gain a strength that cannot be achieved when everyone keeps bitching at me to stay put where I am."

Itachi's intent observation of his younger brother continued. "What do you plan to do after I die?"

Sasuke recoiled and stared at Itachi, his eyes wide with shock. Not two seconds later his surprise faded away, replaced by a narrowed stare, scowl and an indent between his dark eyebrows. "Just what do you mean?"

"Fool, I mean exactly what I said. If you manage to kill me, what will you do with the rest of your life?" Itachi jumped down from his perch and landed silently on the dusty terrain below. He stood up to his full height, facing Sasuke face to face with a slight height advantage and no hesitation. Sasuke on the other hand was struck speechless. "Since leaving the village unofficially and escaping your guards, under technical standards you are now classified as a missing-nin. Are you going to keep running from hunter-nin for the rest of your life? Or are you going to try to once again become part of Konoha? You have nowhere else to go. You will have caused immense damage and become the cause of many problems within Konoha due to your foolishness. I believe it is time you stopped being so selfish and think about the emotions of others."

"What I do with my life is none of your damn business!" the younger Uchiha stomped forward, his right hand clenched in a fist. Before he could come within two feet of Itachi, he was halted by two fingers pressing into the center of his forehead.

Itachi regarded Sasuke with a blank look. "Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe next time I will make myself clear. Your complete lack of regard towards those who care for you is simply intolerable."

Sasuke merely blinked once in astonishment before coming back to his senses. Growling, he smacked his brother's hand to the side carelessly. The intruding arm fell back to its master's side with ease. "Don't do that."

A single onyx eyebrow raised in question. "Do what, little brother?"

"Pretend you know me. You don't know anything about me. And don't be such a damn hypocrite! You slaughtered everyone who ever cared about you; don't think you have the right to call me out on something you've already done yourself!"

"Nevertheless, I speak the truth. You seek revenge, but at the same time you refuse to remove yourself from the village because you do not want to lose the last people in your life who you have come to care for. You consider both your team-mates and your sensei as family, and not even revenge is a strong enough force to bend your will to keep them close. Deep inside lurks a scared little boy who wants comfort and stability. They give that to you and thus, you are satisfied with what you have and plotted for the correct time to finish what you started."

Complete and utter silence ensued. If crickets had been in the area, they would have surely been heard. Sasuke stared, jaw slack as could be permitted for an Uchiha. Naruto blinked once, twice, and a third time, blue eyes round as saucers. Sakura gasped quietly from across the clearing, Yugao stirring from her position over her muscled shoulder.

"Hey! Is that true, teme? Hah, I knew you loved us!"

Sasuke's eyes darted to Naruto's perch within the trees before him, glaring maliciously. "Shut _up, _dobe."

"Excuse me, _princess. _You're the one being an idiot here. You could have just waited another day until the elder teme was brought in; but _no, _you had to fucking become a missing nin cause you're such a damn retard!"

"I don't care about any of that."

Naruto gawked at the dark-haired male before him in astonished outrage. "What? How the hell am I supposed to explain this to baa-chan?! And why do I always have to be the one to save your sorry ass? For a genius, you're really not that bright."

The Uchiha's glare turned murderous. "I dare you to repeat that."

Naruto shrugged carelessly. "Alright, you asked for it." His hands quickly formed the necessary seals for his favourite technique. Hinata watched on as the air surrounding him was turned smoky in an instant. "You're the stupidest genius I've ever met. _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_"

Her Byakugan counted one hundred and thirty seven clones, which were now all leaping out of the trees and rampaging towards Sasuke in a massive horde. The young male swung his sword with silent precision, slicing sixteen in half and causing them to dissipate immediately in clouds of smoke. Fifty of the remaining clones paired off, creating twenty-five glowing blue spheres of his signature _Rasengan _whilst the others continued with their assault.

"_Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"_

A rather enormous fireball flew from Sasuke's lips and set fire to Naruto's remaining doppelgangers. One managed to leap out of the way in the nick of time and escaped with only a singed sleeve. Sasuke's bored stare shifted from the cloud of smoke in front of him to the orange-clad boy. "Don't bother trying to stop me. I'll kill you if you make yourself a nuisance."

It wasn't the fact that his team-mate was attacking him and his comrades that made the cloak of orange Kyuubi chakra form along Naruto's entire physique. It wasn't because Sasuke engaged in battle with a fellow Konoha nin that caused the first two tails to emerge. It wasn't even due to the fact that he had become a missing-nin that forced red into the irises of Naruto's normally sky blue eyes.

It was the raw honesty and determination swirling deep within the inky confines of the Uchiha's spinning sharingan that made Uzumaki Naruto lose all sense of self.

"Like hell you can land a scratch on me, you fucking asshole! You don't give enough of a shit to bother trying!" a shiver ran its way up Hinata's spine as she detected the wild, untamed rough edge to his voice that occurred only when he gave in to the wrath of the demon that lay deep within. "You were born here, raised here, and educated here! You made _friends _here! And now you're willing to throw all of it away for some petty revenge?!"

His best friend's eyes turned absolutely lethal. "_What?_"

Naruto glared, something he did only when he was furious beyond belief. "You're such a self-absorbed, selfish prick! I know what it's like to want revenge! How do you think I felt when Gaara was killed during the Shukaku extraction?!"

"Gaara is alive."

"Only because granny Chiyo sacrificed her life to bring him back! I sat alongside her, giving him my life force so he could continue to lead his people and save my friend!" Naruto snarled in an animalistic manner and a third tail sprouted alongside the other three, reaching out and waving sinisterly. "If you'd open your fucking _eyes, _you'd _see _that revenge won't solve anything! Your family may have been murdered, but ask yourself this- _why would your brother murder his kin?!_"

Sasuke scoffed harshly. "And what of yourself... Naruto. You are the host to the very entity which murdered your parents and tried to kill you. You cannot simply tell me you hold no grudge against the Kyuubi for his actions. Hatred is inevitable."

Naruto's eyes clouded over briefly. "I mourn the fact my parents are dead every day of my life. Being jinchuuriki to the Kyuubi is sometimes a bitter pill to swallow, but he is a demon. They don't have the same outlook as we do. The Kyuubi is created of only hatred, revenge and rage. I know better than you could ever believe, just how you feel. The only difference between you and I is that I will never succumb to the urge to kill people who do not deserve to be killed. Innocents won't perish. Most people have a shred of good within themselves that can grow into a new soul, one that fights for the good instead of the bad."

"You don't know shit. I grew up with my family. You, on the other hand, grew up with nothing. You have no right to compare your pathetic loneliness to the fury that I feel." Sasuke turned away, waving a hand in dismissal. "Get out of here. You're just annoying me."

"_Why, you...!_" Naruto's head shook back and forth like a bull preparing to charge. As he did so, the chakra cloak engulfing his form grew thicker and took on a more distinguishable fox-like form. His mouth opened, exposing fangs and jagged teeth, and roared. Sasuke paused in his leisurely stroll which consisted of three paces and turned around at the sudden spike of malicious chakra behind him.

The sight that met his eyes was Naruto, more fox than human with elongated claws and the first stages of bones growing within the chakra cloak, tilting his head back towards the sky, his jowls wide open. Upon shifting his gaze higher, Sasuke became acutely aware of the rapidly expanding purple _Tailed Beast Bomb _that floated in the sky.

This was not good. Not good at all. Without thinking, Hinata burst from the foliage above and landed eighteen feet to the right of Naruto's form. She watched with wide eyes as he roared again and pulled on a brave face.

"Naruto-kun! Please, stop! You're not thinking straight; you'll hurt everyone and possibly kill us! Naruto-kun! Onegai, you _must_! _Naruto-kun!_"

Her final scream rent the air as a tail lashed out with the speed of light and smashed into her abdomen. As she flew backwards for a few hundred meters before landing in a rough-and-tumble fashion, Hinata's body burned excruciatingly with the severe burns inflicted by the Kyuubi chakra which incinerated a good chunk of her torso. Beneath the blood and raw skin, the throbbing of multiple shattered ribs demanded her immediate attention.

Breathing with great difficulty and barely managing not to choke up mouthfuls of her own blood, Hinata set forth on the painfully slow procedure of mending her ribs amongst foilage of ferns and scraggly bushes- using her chakra to pull forth bits of bone that embedded themselves deep within her muscle, one shard in particular that had nearly severed her spinal cord with the force of its break, and gluing them together so that the pieces would hold together long enough to mend back together in one piece.

She was not even halfway through healing her ribs minutes later when a familiar chakra signature made itself known. Sakura ran forth and immediately placed glowing hands over the area which she had previously been healing. "Hinata? Oh Kami, Hinata, I'm so glad you're okay. Everyone's so worried." Minutes passed as sakura finished working on Hinata's ribs and moved on to reverse the damage caused by the Kyuubi's chakra on her skin.

"Sakura... how is Naruto?"

Her pink-haired friend grimaced briefly before schooling her expression into something more neutral. "He's... he's okay now. Yamato caught hold of him before anything worse happened. "Right now he's being held caged by Yamato's jutsu so he wont do anything else stupid."

Hinata winced and grimaced only as a Hyuuga would- delicately. "Is he... Does... does he know about...this?"

Sakura shook her head. "Not yet. You know what will happen... and right now none of us can afford to have him breaking down in the middle of the battlefield."

Hinata's voice lowered to an airy whisper as she nodded. "I see." Her voice became stronger. "It is not his fault. I don't blame him for anything."

Her companion smiled in a bittersweet way, more of a wry twist of the lips than anything else, as she spoke. "I know you don't Hinata. I don't either. It's just that he knows it's still him that did it, even if he was under the Kyuubi's control. It doesn't matter to him; he can't stand the thought of hurting those that are close to him. It kills him to know he has, even if there was nothing he could do to stop it."

"But I wish he wouldn't be so hard on himself. No one is perfect, and I won't love or care for him any less because he would do anything to keep his friends close. It is an admirable trait and I wouldn't change him for the world."

Sakura watched the Hyuuga with keen, calculating eyes. "Is something going on between you and Naruto?"

She shook her head negative. "No... at least I don't think so. We had a... an agreement on the matter that we were both a little unsure of how strong our feelings for each other actually ran."

"And?"

Hinata shrugged lightly. "We have come to the conclusion that it's best we remain close friends. We just work better that way; and I would hate to jeopardize such a relationship as the one Naruto and I share."

Sakura smiled. "That's what I thought." She picked up her slightly scattered medic supplies and tucked them away safely within her pack. Standing up, she looked back at her close friend. "Can you walk?"

Hinata nodded as he stood up. "I feel perfectly fine, Sakura. Thank you very much for your help; I feel as good as new."

"That's what I like to hear from my patients! Now, come on, we need to get back to the others."

### ### ###

The scene wasn't much better upon their return- Sasuke was now battling Sai, who was busily painting various ink animals to attack the young Uchiha. In turn, Sasuke's katana was alight with _Chidori_ as he attempted to slice the beasts into splatters.

"He's gone crazy." Hinata glanced over at Sakura to see the girl's sad eyes trained on the battling Uchiha crest below. She silently concurred with her statement- indeed it seemed like Uchiha Sasuke had gone over the edge of sanity upon being in close proximity with his elder brother. "...His chakra is almost gone. It's funny-his main goal is to fight Itachi, but everyone else keeps interfering, causing him to use larger amounts of chakra because he gets so irritated. It's kind of hard to believe he's usually so level-headed when he's clearly just fallen off his rocker."

Hinata looked on as Sai bit into his thumb and used the bubbling blood to smear pictures on the scroll he faithfully carried everywhere. A giant tiger, red this time, leaped forth in a dead run towards Sasuke. He swiped his katana through the animal in a graceful arc.

Nothing happened.

The tiger continued forth with amazing speed and pounced on the Uchiha, causing him to fall down with a thump. A _poof!_ Sounded, followed by the thump of a log hitting the forest floor. Sasuke stood meters away, watching the scene with great intensity as he determined the best course of action.

Seeing as how he was standing directly in front of a large tree, it surprised Hinata when he suddenly fell to his knees before landing face-first in the dirt. Blinking once in confusion, dust around his body settled and silence overtook the area.

"What the hell just happened?" Kiba muttered, Akamaru yipping in agreement of his query.

That was when Itachi strolled out from behind the tree, hands tucked away in the depths of his Akatsuki cloak sleeves. Ino leaped down from her perch into a defensive stance, eyeing the man before her warily. "What did you do to Sasuke-kun?!" she demanded, blue eyes alight with fury. Itachi ignored and continued walking along his path, stopping directly in front of Hinata. He raised his right arm. The fist of his hand couldn't be seen since Hinata shut off her Byakugan after healing part of her ribs, but she did not make any move to turn it on again. She sensed no malicious intent streaming from his form and decided he did not pose a threat. Sakura shifted into a defensive stance beside her much like ino had done and glared at the older man harshly.

His left hand reached out for her hand. Too stumped with muted surprise to really do anything but watch his movements, she let him pull her right hand forward and gently uncurl her fingers with his thumb- which she noted was calloused yet soft and pleasant when running along her skin. His other hand moved above hers and descended slowly. Hinata felt the light brush of her fingers followed by a familiar cold weight.

His left hand then held her wrist lightly as the right hand pushed her fingers back up to hold her kunai in a way that she would not drop it nor get cut. "I believe this belongs to you, Hyuuga-san." His voice was a deep and rich tenor, music to her sensitive ears. The oncoming of a light blush overtook her features as she hesitantly met his eyes. They were onyx once again and held amused warmth that stole her breath.

"Uchiha-san... I- em, thank you." Hinata ducked her head slightly to hide her deepening flush.

"You are welcome." He released her hands and stepped away. Naruto, who had been let free of Yamato's wooden cage, stalked up to him and jabbed a finger into his chest. Yamato and a few others tensed in anticipation but he paid them no mind as he glared on. "What the hell were you thinking, elder teme?! Why would you egg him on like that? Any why did you have a weapon?"

Itachi merely stared placidly at the fuming blonde before him. "Would you rather I let him continue his foolish treatment?"

Naruto blinked. Itachi took advantage of his moment of speechlessness and stepped away from the blonde's invading finger, and instead stared out into the forest before them blankly.

Shino appeared beside Sasuke. Bending down, he picked up the young Uchiha effortlessly and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Bugs crawled out from the sleeves of his coat until the man over his shoulder was completely covered in insects.

Ino scrunched up her nose in distaste at the sight. "Ew. Shino, make sure they don't go up his nose or something."

"They will monitor his chakra levels by eating away at it until there is only the amount necessary for survival. You need not worry, Ino-san. He will not suffocate."

Said kunoichi flushed lightly at his words and turned away, huffing. Shikamaru made his presence known and signalled everyone down to the ground. "Let's go already. This has been enough of a drag as it is, I don't want to be hanging around here any longer than I have to."

"Hai!"

their trek continued in the predetermined three stage fan, Hinata guarding the Uchiha and keeping close tabs on his chakra levels. The amount of chakra he contained was the same as Sasuke's- merely enough to survive. It astounded Hinata just how easily Sasuke had fallen...

Itachi was victorious over his brother, even without the access of his chakra.

### ### ###

This took forever, I know, but I think that now this chapter is finished, my writer's block has lifted, even if only a small bit. I sincerely hope the writing of the next chapter won't take as long, but I will do my best. I hope the content is enough to make up for the lack of updates! Even though I know it's probably not x_x

Reviews and comments are greatly appreciated! :]

P.S.: I made a YouTube video for Naruto with the Melody Fall song 'It Can't Be Over'. If anyone cares to view it, my username is 'erinrawrwolf'. I would post the link but I don't think it would work on the site so there you go!


	15. King and Lionheart

'Howling ghosts they reappear,  
In mountains that are stacked with fear.  
But you're a king and I'm a lionheart.'

_-'King and Lionheart'- Of Monsters and Men_

### ### ###

It was odd to see the body of Sasuke Uchiha floating three feet above the ground as Konoha's nine-man cell steadily trekked their way closer to the gates of their hometown. Hinata couldn't help but take note of just how often both Sakura and Ino glanced back at their raven- haired team mate many times per minute; although the former was much more discreet in her actions. Ino, on the other hand, seemed intent on making sure none of the insects carrying the male's body ventured into areas which were required for life- namely the nose, mouth and chest.

Dust clouds steadily arose from the parched path they walked upon as the sun rose higher into the sky. Sweat trickled down the bridge of Hinata's nose and she quietly wiped it away with a finger. She very much loved her native land, but the great increase in temperatures during the summer months really left something to be desired. She was suddenly grateful for her colour choice in clothing and thankful she decided not to opt for a black ensemble which would make her case multiple times more desperate.

Almost as if on cue, she watched discreetly from the corner of her eye as Itachi moved his arms as best he could with his hands bound together. He looked as though he was trying to get his cloak unstuck from his most likely sweat covered body.

_Ne, Hinata, what... steamy thoughts you are having these days. If this keeps up, you will find yourself in a compromising position... with or without the aid of the Uchiha._

Hinata's eyes widened at the unexpected thought and forced her eyes away from the nearby Uchiha. Her subconscious was indeed getting the best of her, and she could not fathom why even if her life depended on it. Never before in her life had she had such intimate thoughts about anyone, even Naruto.

It must be suppressed hormones.

Her head subconsciously bobbed down in a small and resolute nod as she pondered this anomaly. Yes, that must be it. She had never so much as kissed a boy in her life. She had never gone out on dates. However, if she were to judge by her father's increasingly studious gaze every time they crossed paths back at the compound before she left, she would have had to say he would have liked very much to marry her off to whomever was available to pick up the pieces.

What she was unaware of at the moment was a certain pair of onyx eyes closely observing her profile as they travelled side by side. Soon enough her ninja instincts kicked in and she became aware of being watched. Slowly, her eyes shifted over to the right in a discreet attempt to determine whether or not it was Itachi who was staring twin holes into the side of her face.

Shying lavender met intense onyx.

Air was quickly sucked into her lungs as Hinata's eyes snapped back to stare unseeingly in front of her. Her heart was beating out a hurried, uneven pace and she was suddenly short of breath. She narrowly avoided tripping over a protruding rock not a second later and she felt more than saw the man beside her smirk slightly in amusement.

"Hyuuga-san."

### ### ###

Her back tensed at the sound of his voice, he noted with silent amusement. This kunoichi was a striking contradiction indeed. One day she battles with the bravery of a thousand shinobi and the next, she blushes like a girl fresh out of the academy from a mere glance. She even had he audacity to wish him a good night's rest. How could one be so tough yet so vulnerable? It was the only information to come his way since as far back as he could remember, the only information he had not yet solved.

He excelled at every subject he chose to study.

Hyuuga Hinata would be no exception. She intrigued him in a way which he never experienced before in his life. He had met interesting individuals, yes, and very intelligent female friends in the past, but the Hyuuga girl... no, woman, in front of him was somehow different. Pearlescent lavender eyes met his own once again and he stared forward blindly.

"...H-hai? Uchiha-san?"

Her quiet yet melodic voice pulled Itachi back to his senses. Belatedly he realized with silent shame he had been watching her for minutes now and then forgot about his prior words to her which were meant as a beginning to conversation. His kaa-chan would have chastised him to the moon and back, had she been here at the moment to witness his blatant lack of manners he had been taught all throughout his childhood.

"_Itachi-chan, be a dear and bring this out to the table please." Kaa-chan handed a nine year old Itachi a bowl of what appeared to be a particularly delicious recipe of rice with cabbage and other vegetables thrown in. He didn't smile, but he knew his mother could tell by the way his eyes lit up that he was more than satisfied with her choice of culinary masterpieces for the night._

"_Hai, Kaa-chan."_

_Itachi moved into the next room, bowl in hand. Kneeling down at his place at the table, he silently placed it down next to a smaller bowl of pickled beets and sushi rolls. _

_Back in the kitchen he could hear pans and various utensils moving around as his kaa-chan washed them up quickly. A minute later he heard her voice and secretly smiled at what was to come._

"_Sasuke-chan! Come, it is time to eat now."_

_Itachi counted a total of three seconds before a small blue and white blur launched himself onto Itachi's shoulders. He didn't move at the sudden addition in weight but simply held on to his younger brother's forearms gently. At five years old, Sasuke's speed was already remarkable. He would grow up to be a formidable shinobi._

_Itachi leaned his head back and met Sasuke's eyes which were shining bright with excitement. "Aniki! In the academy today Iruka-sensei had us practice shuriken throwing for the first time. And guess what?" Itachi was going to play the fool and guess something completely outrageous, but his younger brother looked just so incredibly thrilled, he couldn't do it. So instead he simply requested Sasuke to tell him, for he hadn't the slightest idea. Sasuke bounced up and down as much as he could while latched on to his shoulders and grinned a beaming smile. "I got all my shuriken in the center of the target! Even the moving ones! It's cause we practice so much; can we do it again tonight? I wanna do just as well tomorrow too, and the day after that!"_

_His eyes creased in a happy smile as Itachi reached up and ruffled Sasuke's spiky black hair. "Excellent work, Sasuke. You are improving quite well. I'm proud." His younger brother simply giggled with happiness and buried his face in the back of Itachi's shirt to cover his small blush at his older brother's compliment._

_Their kaa-chan walked in a moment later with two more bowls in hand. She caught sight of Sasuke and smiled. Meeting Itachi's eyes she winked knowingly before setting the bowls down on the table._

"_Sasuke-chan, take your seat now. Your brother needs to breathe." Her voice was strict but tender at the same time and Itachi smiled lightly as Sasuke reluctantly released his hold on him and took his seat on a tatami mat on the other side of the table. Everyone picked up their set of chopsticks. _

"_Itadakimasu." _

_Itachi was just reaching for the rice and cabbage when Fugaku broke the silence. "Itachi. You made it to jounin level today. You did well." Itachi cringed internally at the roundabout compliment and nodded his head in respectful acceptance of his Ototou's words._

_When his father finally turned his attention to the food before him, Itachi discreetly glanced over at his kaa-chan for aid. She was ready for the action and smiled sweetly._

"_Hai, Itachi. You are performing exceptionally well and rising quickly through the shinobi ranks. We are very proud of you."_

_Itachi smiled. "Arigatou, Kaa-chan, Oto-san."_

_Sasuke looked up at him with admiration shining bright in his eyes. "Wow, aniki! You're so awesome! I'm going to become a great shinobi one day, just like you!" Itachi smiled on the outside, but his insides twisted up painfully at his younger brother's words. He hoped Sasuke would never have to make the heart-wrenching decisions that he himself was currently being forced to undergo. Sasuke was pure, lively. Itachi wanted him to remain untainted for as long as was possible._

"_Itachi-chan." Itachi turned to his mother. She was placing some pickled radishes into her bowl as she spoke, not meeting his eyes but speaking with strength. "Will you be attending the clan meeting tomorrow night?" he was about to respond when Fugaku answered first, laying his chopsticks horizontally across the top of his now empty bowl._

"_Mikoto. You already know Itachi will not be present at the clan meeting. He has other duties to fulfill, and will be doing so tomorrow night without allowance for any interference."_

_Sasuke's eyes dulled with sadness. "But aniki, we made plans to train tomorrow night."_

_Itachi closed his eyes for a moment before smiling lightly at him. "Sasuke." He reached across the table, and slowly, with two fingers extended, he poked Sasuke squarely in the forehead. Ignoring sasuke's angry squeal of protest Itachi retracted his fingers and picked up his chopsticks once more. "I'm sorry. Maybe next time."_

_Sasuke frowned in stubborn irritation. "But you always say that! Lately you never have any time at all for me anymore. You're always going off on stupid missions and you're never home! Who am I supposed to train with if you're not here to help? It's not fair!"_

_A suggestion for his younger brother training with their Ototou rose to Itachi's lips but he didn't get the chance to voice it. Fugaku had closed his eyes during the interaction between his sons but opened them at Sasuke's outburst._

"_Enough of your complaints, Sasuke!" Fugaku's voice was loud and terse. Sasuke bowed his head and flinched slightly under his Ototou's angry glare. Itachi felt a flare of anger at him for yelling as Sasuke, but held his tongue. It would do no good to plant the seeds to another argument. "Itachi is now of jounin rank. He is an exceptional shinobi whose duties to his clan come first and foremost. He was chuunin at your age. Itachi knows his responsibilities. He will complete his duties before he does anything else- that includes training as well!"_

_Sasuke was close to tears. Mikoto placed a hand on his small shoulder and glared up at her husband. "Fugaku!"_

_The man in question stood up, angered. "You should not baby him, Mikoto. He is five years old and should have already graduated from the academy! Yet, here he sits, crying in face of the truth. Itachi will complete his mission tomorrow night. I will not hear of any more of your excuses." He left._

_Itachi sat still as Sasuke jumped into Mikoto's comforting embrace. His sniffles were muffled by the softness of her shirt at his kaa-chan rubbed his younger brother's back comfortingly, whispering words he couldn't hear._

_Sasuke didn't deserve to live like this. None of them did._

### ### ###

Itachi's eyes lightened with an air of what seemed to be melancholy. Hinata was momentarily struck speechless at what may have been the cause to this sudden rift in energy output. It discomfited her. "Uchiha... er, Itachi-san?"

He continued to stare at her as if he didn't hear a word. "Hyuuga-san. Do I cause you fear?"

Hinata paused, unsure of how to answer his question. She had no doubt in her mind that he could become extremely scary if the times called for it. However, there were multiple times when he could have killed or injure her. He never did anything to strike unjust fear within her. However, he had a large aura. Hinata's ninja instincts told her that the man beside her held a gross amount of chakra at his disposal- and for some reason she could not understand, it felt untainted. His presence was...

She opened her mouth for a moment or two before pressing her tongue against the back of her front teeth. Finally, she answered. "You... your presence... is... it's intimidating."

"Do you fear I will kill you?"

_What the hell?_

"Well... Uchiha-san, I have no doubts you are capable of killing me. However... correct me if I'm wrong, but you have no reason to kill me. Therefore we should not have a problem."

Itachi smirked. "Your team-mates are not nearly so compliant."

"Hai," she nodded. "They are not. But I must admit, I..." she wanted to tell Itachi she believed him, that she suspected something was amiss with the Uchiha massacre. She wanted him to feel like there was someone he could trust- she wanted to be the one he could place his trust in. the look in Itachi's eyes was dark- intense and calculating. It brought Hinata out of her musings. No. she could not even think about risking her suspicions at this point in time. She and Uchiha-san were barely acquaintances. She had no right to divulge information of such a sensible nature to someone she did not know personally. "There is good in everyone. I believe there are reasons behind every action and some reasons just aren't approved of by others, and that is why the person becomes alienated."

He kept in perfect step sequence with her, his eyes never for one instant leaving her face as they both leaped over a recently fallen tree. "Is there a certain past occurrence to which you are hinting at my innocence?"

The trees whizzed by in a green and brown blur as they continued running forward. _Kuso. _She had just unintentionally shown herself up. She knew he was now aware of her minute stall, if the slight furrow at his eyebrows and frown tugging at his lips was anything to go by. She had no idea how to save herself from her slip up.

"Land ho!"

Naruto's obnoxious yell startled Hinata from her musings. She glanced skittishly at the Uchiha beside her- she was still being picked apart visually, piece by piece. "Hey, Kiba! Race me to Ichiraku's! I'm starving for some ramen!"

"Naruto!" Sakura smacked Naruto over the top of the head with a tad of chakra infusion. While he keeled over in obvious pain, Shikamaru landed beside him and hauled him up by the shoulders.

"Sedate him," he deadpanned.

Sakura nodded and silently placed a hand to the back of the blonde's neck. With a single strike to a certain pressure point he was out cold, going so far as to snore. "So troublesome," Shikamaru mumbled in irritation. "Even on S-ranked missions, the twit can't keep food out of his mind for even a second." Sakura lifted the now drooling Hokage-to-be onto her back piggyback style, grimacing at the wet mark on her shoulder. "Let's get this mission report over with."

In minutes they arrived at the village gates. As they entered, civilians and shinobi alike stopped and stared in either awe or disgust as Hinata led the elder missing-nin through, holding on to his bound wrists whilst Chouji, Kiba and Shino surrounded him from the other three sides. Everyone else walked with them as a secondary barrier, providing Itachi with no chance of escape. Sasuke remained unconscious, floating along under Shino's mattress of chakra insects.

Minutes later the Hokage Tower loomed in front of the group. Chouji opened the doors, allowing the rest of the group through. Gently nudging Itachi forward, Hinata smiled and nodded her thanks at Chouji as she passed, causing a slight flush to spread over the young shinobi's cheeks. After traversing up multiple flights of stairs, the ten of them came face to face with the imposing doors of the Hokage's office on the top floor of the building. There was no one else present in the halls. From behind him, Hinata could see with her Byakugan that the Uchiha was looking around at his surroundings, perhaps trying to remember everything and comparing it to how things were before he left.

A few moments passed and no one said anything. The gravity of the situation was hitting them all- this group composed of nine jounin had managed to bring home the world's most infamous missing-nin in history. Hinata shuffled her feet anxiously. "Eh... ready?" she addressed the entire group before her, but she found herself staring at the back of Itachi's head expectantly. She saw his head dip down in a slight nod and nodded her head in response, even though he couldn't see the action.

_Really, why am I being so compliant with him? He's an S-class missing nin..._

Shino stepped forward and raised his hand to knock on the Hokage's office door. Before is knuckles hit the door however, a voice boomed.

"For cripes sake, just come in already! The ten of you have been dawdling out there for five minutes. I need my reports! And some sake! _Shizune!_"

Sakura sweatdropped. Shino twisted the door handle and opened it, allowing the first seven ninjas through. Hinata followed, Itachi walking not a step ahead of her. She felt Shino fall in step from behind and smiled inwardly at her team-mate's protective streak.

The Hokage sat before the group at her large mahogany wood desk, covers with sky-high piled of paperwork. TonTon oinked from her perch on the Hokage's lap. As Hinata walked through the crowd with Itachi, her gaze became flinty and cold as steel.

"Uchiha Itachi. Renegade missing-nin for nine years. Now twenty-one years of age. Member of Akatsuki. Bringer of death, disaster and destruction. Treason. Spying. Withholding information. The list goes on... ah. Here we are. Committer of the Uchiha clan massacre." Tsunade looked up from a small pile of papers in her hands and stared stonily at the man in question. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Itachi stared right back at her, his eyes... _bleak._ "It had to be done. There were no other options."

Tsunade's eyes darkened. "You have disrespected an entire nation. Many have been murdered by your hand. Crimes such as this do not go unpunished. The severity of the situation is much too extreme to overlook."

"Hokage-sama."

Itachi's head whipped to the right. Hinata's eyes followed suit, landing on an elderly male who stood crippled, a cane in hand. His face and right arm wrapped securely in snow white gauze, leaving only one eye visible. Next to him stood two others- the elders of the Leaf Village, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane.

Itachi was tense. Very tense. Hinata glanced at his back and face, trying to figure out what exactly was happening to upset him so much. Even her Byakugan did nothing to diffuse the confusion surrounding her.

The Hokage briefly closed her eyes, appearing irritated with the situation at hand. "Danzo. Homura. Koharu. To what do I owe this honour?"

Danzo bowed low and spoke lightly. "Forgive us, Hokage-sama. We heard word of Uchiha Itachi's arrival to the Leaf and merely wish to oversee his punishment." Tsunade's hand that wasn't holding papers clenched into a fist, veins throbbing.

"Your concern is noted. However, the situation is under control. There is no need for you three to be here any longer. You are dismissed."

Homura's eyes thinned into slits as she glared. "How dare you speak to the elders in such a way?! You have only been Hokage for five years. Never before have you dealt with a situation this extreme. We are here to ensure proper punishment is extended to the Uchiha and will not be leaving until everything is sorted out."

Tsunade stood suddenly. Her chair flew backwards, skidding along the floor before it crashed into the wall. Cracks ran up the wall. Tsunade ignored them completely and spun around, a hand on her hip. "Silence Homura! _I _am Hokage! Your presence is not required, leave at once!"

Homura stepped forward, but was stopped by Danzo's outstretched arm. "Homura," he said gently, "Perhaps it is best if you return to your quarters. I will inform you of what is to come." The female elder sputtered out a furious response but he merely smiled pleasantly. "Please, Homura. The sooner this problem is dealt with, the sooner you will become aware of the result." Angrily, she stomped off, leaving through a hidden door at the back of the Hokage's office. That must have been why Hinata didn't feel their chakra as soon as they entered Tsunade's office.

"Hokage-sama," Koharu started, "surely you must be aware of the direness of the situation. Uchiha Itachi must be punished accordingly."

"I know that," she hissed. Koharu merely nodded and stepped back. Tsunade stood still for a moment, eyes closed. When they opened, twin pools of hard gold met Itachi's onyx orbs. "Your fate had been decided."

Hinata subconsciously gripped Itachi's wrists a little harder than necessary as she waited to hear his fate, staring holes into the back of his red cloud patterned cloak. She was worried. Itachi was indeed a criminal, but he acted like anything but one. She knew something was amiss. She just _knew._

"Uchiha Itachi," Tsunade declared formally, "By law of Konohagakure, in repentance for your crimes you are hereby sentenced to death."

### ### ###

So I know I haven't updated in forever, but I started college in January and the workload doesn't leave much enthusiasm for extra writing. However, I have no school today due to inclimate weather-y driving conditions and thus, I wrote!

I hope you guys like this chapter! R&R is loved!


	16. My Apology

'_A tragic victim of my circumstance,  
Never give the devil a second chance  
If you do you know that you never will  
Probably best to forget and begin again'_

_-'My Apology'- Great Big Sea_

### ### ###

The weight of the silence that followed was staggering. No one uttered a single sound. Even Naruto was quiet, staring with wide blue eyes at the woman in front of him who just crossed her arms and sighed. Hinata felt her heart stop beating for a second or two before it restricted, then started chugging along again at a rapid pace. He was going to be executed? She knew such a thing was advisable given the amount of trouble Itachi had caused the leaf, but everyone deserved a second chance...right?

Itachi himself appeared as unaffected as though Tsunade-sama had merely commented on the weather- stone-faced, immobile, and expressionless... resigned. But, despite the Uchiha's remarkable poker face, Hinata could easily feel the pulse of blood underneath the midnight dark sleeve of the Akatsuki cloak covering his shoulders. It seemed his heart was beating just as quickly as hers, if not faster.

"Yay..." Kiba broke the silence. For special effects, he clapped his hands in slow motion. When nobody joined in and stared at his childish reaction, his hands dropped to his side and Akamaru whined pitifully. "Nani?! We're just celebrating the demise of Konoha's most wanted criminal. You guys should be doing the same thing!"

Ino, who was standing closest to the imbecilic dog lover, raised her hand and expertly hit him over the head with a resounding _thwack!_ Kiba, you baka! Think things through for once, why don't you? When's the last time a Leaf shinobi was sentenced to death for any crime?" The boy in question scratched his head, throwing a sideways glance at his fluffy companion. "I don't care about that sort of politics, Ino. All that matters is that Uchiha is being thrown into the pits of hell where he belongs."

As they spoke, Hinata glanced up at Itachi. What she saw broke her heart- the emotion she witnessed crossing the stoic Uchiha's face was one she was both surprised and compassionate to see- grief. Her rapidly speeding train of thought derailed as Tsunade cleared her throat loudly, successfully shutting everyone up.

"As I was saying... Ino has brought up a valid point. Shinobi laws have come into place eight years ago, stating the death sentence is too severe and inhumane form of punishment and was to be replaced by prison sentence. I'm quite surprised you don't remember learning of this within the Academy."

Sakura opened her mouth, about to reply, but Naruto beat her to the punch. "Ne, Baa-chan," he smiled nervously, scratching at the back of his head in the process. "I think everyone kinda fell asleep during Law and Politics class..."

Blonde pigtails swayed back and forth as the Hokage shook her head in faked shame. "I should have known you youngster would have no respect for the world's rules... Although, this law had quite a difficult time coming into play because of a certain Uchiha missing-nin. Council members and Hokages alike voted on the subject for all or nothing. It was a close call, but the Shinobi Imprisonment Act passed scrutiny and is now upheld by all five hidden villages."

"As long as punishment is given. Imprisonment is a harsher sentence than death. The criminal is forced to consider their actions until the day they die." Koharu watched the shinobi before him with beseeching eyes. Danzo remained silent, but his shoulders appeared to have tensed over the last couple of minutes.

Tsunade cast her eyes towards Sasuke, who remained afloat with the aid of Shino's chakra insects. "However, Itachi is not our only case in this matter. Uchiha Sasuke has also taken it upon himself to willingly flee the village, another act of treason."

Danzo bowed pleasantly; slightly wrinkled hand still holding a firm grip on his wooden cane. "Hokage-sama, the best course of action would be to place both Uchihas in prison as soon as would be allowed. It seems Uchiha Sasuke is already showing signs of following in his brother's footsteps. Such a thing would only lead to more of a mess for the Leaf to clean up."

The Hokage's arms tightened their crossed embrace further as her eyebrows furrowed in annoyed defiance. "On the contrary, Danzo. Since we have so conveniently managed to retrieve both Uchiha men at the same time, I will arrange with the Judicial Court of the Leaf to oversee a paired trial questioning both Uchiha Sasuke _and _Uchiha Itachi."

Danzo's single eye widened ever so slightly at Tsunade's words. "Why waste such precious time with the court system when we are already aware of what happened nine years ago?" He gestured at Sasuke, fingers twitching. "As for Sasuke-san, let this be his punishment and his warning. Surely enough, with time and consideration he will learn the error of his ways."

Tsunade turned without warning to the bandaged man. He merely smiled at her, eye closed, though he looked strained. "Do you have something against proper justice and the law, Danzo Shimura?"

He shifted his footing slightly and shook his head. "Of course not, Hokage-sama-"

"Then you will not object to my plan. You know very well each missing-nin has a foolproof trial upon their return during which his or her fate will be decided, including the aid of the Yamanaka Clan's mind-reading jutsu. Unless you are guilty of something to do with the Uchiha Clan, you have no reason to object so vehemently to my words."

Danzo appeared to be having an inner battle with himself. A sound of frustration escaped his mouth, at which Tsunade raised her eyebrow. "I will agree to your terms," he gritted out. Tsunade nodded curtly. Very well. And you, Koharu?" the Hokage's eyes burned with something fierce, which must have been why the elderly man quickly bowed and voiced his assent.

"Hai, Hokage-sama. The Council has only the utmost faith in your judgement." If Hinata wasn't watching out the corner of her eye, she would have missed the way Danzo's eye snapped open and sent the other man a chilling look. The gears in her mind were turning, but Hinata decided to ignore that little exchange for the time being and focus on something else.

"You are both dismissed." Danzo and Koharu bowed in sync before shuffling up the hidden staircase, promptly disappearing from sight. She turned back around and looked around at the ninjas before her, eyes stopping when they reached Sakura. "Oh, _Sakura_!" she sang happily. Hinata discreetly raised an eyebrow at the Hokage's sudden turn in character, but then again, Tsunade was famous for her rapidly changing temperaments. "Would you care to do a couple of little missions for your old shishou?" she smiled innocently, clasping her hands together in the process.

Sakura looked very suspicious and none too enthusiastic to accept her request. "Nani, shishou? What are these missions?"

The Hokage smiled wickedly. "They're secrets."

Her pink-haired apprentice groaned. "I know I'll regret this... but fine, I accept."

Tsunade clapped her hands together in excitement. "Excellent!" Sakura fidgeted. "First, place a sound seal please." Sakura nodded and kneeled on the floor. Her hands raised and formed a string of seals Hinata recognized as a particularly strong sealing jutsu. Sakura clapped her hands together and placed one hand on the wall and the other on the floor at the same time. In reaction, the entire room lit up with her green chakra for a few seconds before fading away into nothing. Itachi blinked.

Tsunade nodded in obvious approval at her student's work. "Well done, Sakura. Your sealing skills are improving quite well." Sakura blushed faintly and smiled sheepishly.

"Arigatou, shishou."

"You're welcome! Now, you know where the scroll room is, right?" Sakura nodded, a sense of dread overcoming her exotic features. Tsunade tossed her a key ring which her protégé caught with graceful ease. "Good. I need you to search that room from floor to ceiling and gather any and all sketchy information pertaining to Danzo, the Council, the Third Hokage or the Uchiha. And here, make sure you wear this under your shirt." An emerald pendant attached to a silver chain flew at Sakura's head. She caught it and stared down at the object in her hands, a look of total confusion and disbelief crossing her features. She turned her stare to Tsunade who just waved at her jovially. "I created it in secret with Jiraiya, back when we were sprite. It masks the presence of chakra during use. We don't want any of those pesky ANBU Black Ops patrols noticing your actions and landing yourself in jail, now do we?"

Sakura looked absolutely horrified. "Shishou, you want me to _help Uchiha Itachi? _Are you _nuts_?!" She waved the keys and necklace around in the air, her face growing red with anger. "I refuse to partake in such a... _blasphemous _mission! That man deserves to die for what he did to Sasuke!"

"Sakura!" the girl had the sense to flinch under her Hokage's icy glare. "Are you or are you not loyal to this village? You have worked in interrogation before. How many times has someone been falsely accused of a crime they did not commit or have been framed by enemy shinobi? Your infatuation with Sasuke is threatening to destroy the most important mission we have to solve since many years ago! If you are incapable of handling this mission, I will gladly assign it to Shikamaru instead."

"Baa-chan!" Naruto frowned and placed an orange arm around his pink-haired team-mate. Be nicer to Sakura-chan, she does kinda have a point, ya know!"

Shikamaru groaned loudly in complaint. "This is so troublesome..." Sakura swallowed hard, staring at the hardwood floor beneath her boot clad feet. "Shishou, I..."

"You what, Sakura? I've suspected for years something was amiss with the Uchiha massacre. Facts do not add up. Do you not trust my judgement? Nevertheless, everyone deserves a second chance to redeem themselves. If that was Sasuke in the place of Itachi, would you still be saying the same thing? Or, are you merely biased because you do not know the truth?"

Sakura's head hung low in shame. "Hai...shishou."

Tsunade nodded. "Go on. We will discuss this later." Her apprentice nodded meekly and stood up. Brushing past a confused Naruto, she quickly exited the room, presumably to begin her mission. "Everyone but Itachi and Hinata are dismissed. Due to this change in plans, I will be sending a messenger for you later today."

"Hai!" with some reluctance and a worried glance from Kiba and Shino, the group left the Hokage's office in a herd of confused and angry shinobi. Tsunade turned all of her attention to the two figures left in the room, her _down to business_ mask pulled on. She strolled casually up to Itachi and looked him straight in the eye, squinting a bit as though to get a better idea of what was going through his head. Although he didn't show it, said man was slightly discomfited by her presence in his personal space.

"Uchiha. Your eyes must have become much worse over the last couple of years if my shinobi were made capable of capturing you and bringing you back to Konoha, in one piece at that."

Hinata's jaw dropped as only a lady's could. "Hokage-sama!" she gasped. Tsunade glanced at her briefly and Hinata instantly flushed scarlet, filled with shame at her uncharacteristic outburst. "Gomenasai," she whispered. The Hokage didn't seem to hear her as her attention was already riveted once again on the Uchiha's face.

She lifted a hand and placed it on Itachi's forehead. Pulling back a moment later, she studied her hand and frowned. "You are too warm. Not by much, but enough for any self-respecting medic to become aware of. Your breathing is laboured... body is malnourished. Increased heart rate, from fighting illness or simply shock at once again being in the Leaf..." Tsunade mumbled to herself for another moment, just low enough for Hinata to be unable to hear what she was talking about. Tsunade then looked up at Itachi with grim knowledge in her eyes. "Itachi, how long have you been ill?"

Itachi remained as silent as he was unmoving.

The Hokage sighed, brushing some strands of hair out of her face as she watched him. "look, Uchiha. It doesn't take a legendary medic-nin to know something is amiss." She glanced slyly at Hinata before continuing. Itachi didn't say anything of the movement but made note of it for later investigation. "It is completely your choice whether or not you decide to cooperate during the trial. I'm not claiming you to be innocent because I do not know what really happened, but if you have any wishes of possibly becoming reinstated as a Leaf shinobi or a civilian, this is the only opportunity you will have." Itachi nodded minutely to show he was listening. Tsunade's eyes softened slightly as she continued, "I know you are severely ill. If you want complete honesty from a medical perspective, things are not looking good. However, with an experienced medical ninja available to aid, you will recover. Your eyes may also be undamaged enough to reverse the effects of using your sharingan so often."

"No one will touch my eyes." His voice was cold, hard and defiant. So unlike the Itachi she came to know on the relatively short trek home from the retrieval mission. Unconsciously she took a half step back, still keeping a hold on Itachi's arms but in a way that required less bodily contact.

Tsunade, instead of getting mad, just rolled her eyes petulantly. "You clansmen and your kekkei genkais. All of you have ommetaphobia..." she grinned at Hinata. "Then again, Hinata, I doubt you would be very pleased to have a complete stranger attempting to heal _your _eyes, as well?"

Hinata frowned. It was different for her; she lived in a village all her life and trusted all the medics- especially Sakura and Tsunade- with her life. If something went awry with her kekkei genkai, she was certain one of the two medics would find a way to heal it without and side effects or permanent repercussions. But if she were in Itachi's place...

Her nose wrinkled with displeasure. Tsunade smirked. "You see, Uchiha-san, you will not be alone in this."

Hinata watched the back of Itachi's head turn as he looked at the Hokage. "A part of what, exactly?" he inquired in that deep voice, making a part of Hinata melt in the process.

Tsunade tilted her head slightly as she regarded the pair before her. "I will be appointing Hinata to oversee your full hospitalized recovery and heal your eyes, if you will allow it."

Hinata blinked. "Nani?" she couldn't believe it. She wasn't even as advanced as Sakura was! How was she supposed to heal Uchiha freaking _Itachi_? "Eh... Hokage-sama..."

The Hokage watched the purple-haired shinobi with knowing eyes. "You believe you are under qualified for this mission." Hinata, not knowing how to verbalize her thoughts without coming off as rude or unappreciative, nodded her head shyly. "Ah, I see now. Lest, you shouldn't worry."

Hinata squinted a bit as she tried- and failed- to process the older woman's words. "Why not?" she wondered.

Tsunade smirked again. "Hinata... do you remember the medical proficiency test all medics were required to partake in so I would be aware of what to do to keep the hospital in top shape, keeping more shinobi and civilians alive in the process?" she nodded, suddenly anxious. "I didn't get around to marking all of them yet, but I have marked both yours and Sakura's... and, you should be proud. You and Sakura both aced the test and hypothetical bonus question, resulting in a one-hundred and twenty-two per cent score. I believe you are more than qualified for this assignment. Besides, Sakura is busy at the moment, being elbow-deep in moth-balled, molding scrolls and all. You'll do just fine. I believe in you."

If Hinata were to be honest, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had studied for _months _in order to pass that test, and at times she was certain she was going to fail because the questions were so hard and complex they were making her get a migraine. At least she could breathe easier now, knowing she was well on her way to becoming a skilled medic-nin.

"Is Uchiha-san comfortable with me becoming his personal medic?" Hinata couldn't help but blush at the words she just uttered. The way she said that had just sounded so... _intimate._

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Who cares what he thinks? He's just a former missing-nin." Both Itachi and Hinata stared at her, faces blank. Tsunade cleared her throat, face becoming serious once more. "Really, though, Hinata. You need to stop worrying over everyone else for a change, and start taking care of yourself. Uchiha-san here got himself into this situation, so he damn well better be fucking pleased I'm taking the time to let him repent for his past by being _grateful, honest, _and _truthful._"

If Itachi were anyone but Itachi, Hinata has the suspecting feeling he would have rolled his own eyes at the Hokage's childish behaviour.

"Your behaviour seems unfit for a Hokage."

Tsunade glared at him. "And _your _behaviour seems unfit for slaughtering your entire family in cold blood."

Shoulders tensed. Itachi's voice was quiet when he spoke next. "Not all... Sasuke still lives."

"And by what miracle must that have occurred?"

"Hokage-sama?" Hinata twiddled her fingers as Tsunade turned to face her. "Ne... where _is _Sasuke-san?"

Tsunade smiled. "Why? Hinata, would you like to fill in as Sasuke's personal nurse as

well?"

Itachi turned a little so he could see her face. His intense stare was _really _starting to make Hinata feel light headed; she could not believe the _Hokage_ of all people just asked her such a risqué question.

"I... I believe Sakura-chan will be taking that job once the chance arrives..."

Tsunade nodded. "She will be. Shino has dropped him off with one of the head nurses. That means you will be assigned to full-time care for Uchiha Itachi here. Can you do that?"

Hinata chanced a glance at Itachi, only to see his stare was more intense than it had ever been before. She could feel her cheeks flooding with colour and silently cursed her shyness for getting her into so many awkward and uncomfortable situations. There was a spark of something indefinable in his onyx orbs, but even though Hinata could not place a name to the emotion, it shot a jolt of desire flooding to her stomach. Blushing even harder now, she decided to ignore the Uchiha completely and keep her focus on Tsunade. "Yes, I am," she said with confidence.

Was it just her, or did she see Itachi's shoulders and back just become loose with newfound relaxation?

"That's good to hear. I hope the two of you will get to know each other, or at the very least be able to tolerate each other. There is a lot of work ahead for the both of you."

Hinata nodded. Tsunade moved back to her desk and picked up a clipboard that was practically overflowing with papers of varying colours and sizes. Minutes later she walked over to them again, writing something down on a blank piece of mint green paper. "Here is the room number in which Uchiha-san will be housed for the time being. This," she circled an eight digit code, "is the password to enter the room. The bed is equipped with chakra-draining cuffs so you may release your clan's technique once he is properly secured. There is also a complete set of medical supplies and instruments, should you decide you need to operate in order to aid in the recovery process." She glanced over to the side, where Itachi still stood. "Uchiha, I may believe you're possibly innocent, but until this whole mess is sorted out you will be treated like any other missing-nin."

Itachi nodded his head in agreement. "That is quite alright," he intoned quietly. Hinata blinked, somewhat surprised. For a missing-nin, ever since their battle he had been very compliant. She didn't know what to make of his actions.

"Before the trial you will be interrogated by Yamanaka Inoichi. He will determine your part in the massacre. However, during the trial itself, your memories will be pulled up for the audience to view through a mind projection jutsu. it is the only concrete evidence we will have to verify that you are, indeed, innocent; unless Sakura comes back with hard proof of what happened."

Itachi frowned. He was a private person. He disliked the idea of strangers viewing his most silent thoughts, even if they were at one point in time his comrades. Nevertheless, he supposed it was more than a fair price to pay in return for what happened that fateful night nine long years ago.

"Anyways... off with the two of you. Uchiha-san needs his medic, does he not?" Itachi blinked, Hinata blushed and stepped further behind Itachi to shield herself from the Hokage's teasing gaze.

"H-hai, Tsunade-sama! I will take him to his room right away!"

As they left the Hokage's office, Hinata could hear her laughing. Once they were out of earshot, Hinata sighed quietly. She had a lot of work to do, indeed. Healing Itachi was going to prove to be by far the hardest mission she had ever been assigned throughout the entirety of her shinobi career.

"Are you alright, Hyuuga-san?"

Hinata jumped as he addressed her. She turned to him and blinked, nodding a confirmation to his unexpected but not unappreciated concern. "Hai... Arigatou, Uchiha-san."

"Hn." Hinata sighed again at his answer. Did all Uchiha always include grunting in their daily vocabulary? She always thought it was just a habit of Sasuke's due to not being very social, but perhaps she had been mistaken in her assumptions. In minutes they left the Hokage Tower and made it down the street to the hospital. They received a multitude of stares and comments along the way, but Hinata pushed them all to the back of her mind.

She had something more important to focus on at the moment.

Stepping into the hospital itself was like looking into a beehive. There were people running everywhere, injured people in stretchers and groups of visitors waiting their turn to see their loved ones through all the commotion. Hinata expertly weaved her way through the crowds of people until they reached an elevator. She pressed a button and moments later the doors slid open. Having Itachi walk in first, she followed suit and pressed the button for the twenty first floor. The elevator dropped and she felt her stomach leap a little at the disorienting sensation. Shooting a quick glance at Itachi, she saw he was outwardly unaffected- _how expected of an Uchiha-_ and stood there silently, arms still bound behind his back. He felt her gaze and turned to her with a questioning stare. She immediately turned away and sighed inwardly with relief when the doors slid open once more with an announcing _ding!_ That rang slightly in her ears. She led him down a series of hallways and halted in front of a nondescript steel door. Hinata flipped the cover of what turned out to be a keypad and observed discreetly as she expertly tapped in the numerical code.

_42170836._

With a _beep_ the door slid open, revealing a stark white room with a stark white bed which was covered in stark white blankets. The tiled floor was equally as white, but there was a stain of what seemed to be a sort of chemical on the far side of the room that dyed it a light blue. As soon as they entered the room, the door slid shut and clicked, signalling it had locked.

Hinata led him over to the bed- a single sized mattress placed on a metal gurney, chakra straps at the ready. Itachi sat on the bed and positioned himself accordingly, allowing Hinata to strap his wrists, ankles, waist, arms and legs. She activated the chakra straps and released her clan's jutsu, leaving it to the chakra straps to eat up all his now- flowing chakra.

And man, was there a lot of it.

She knew he had massive chakra reserves when she fought him, but what she felt now was insane. Her intimidation must have shown on her face because the next thing she knew, her name was being called out.

"Hinata-san." Her head snapped up, eyes meeting his strangely serene ones. "There is no need for you to dear me. I will not harm you."

### ### ###

So, I've decided to write another chapter tonight instead of working on my sociology term paper because I wanted to get the ball rolling more before I go on another lazy streak. I hope the story is meeting everyone's satisfaction. R&R is love!


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